Four arrested for trafficking 144 wraps of cocaine from UAE

Confirming the story, NDLEA commander at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA) Lagos, where the first two suspects were arrested with the exhibits, Hamza Umar said two of the suspects were arrested during routine screening at the airport when they tested positive to drug concealment.
“Emeanu Sunday Ogechukwu was first arrested with 70 wraps of cocaine weighing 1.120 kilograms in his inner wear. He said the drugs were given to him by Madubia Vitalis. Shortly after, Nnoli Oliver Uchenna was caught with 74 wraps of cocaine weighing 1.255 kilograms. Nnoli said that the drugs were given to him by Ekwe Chinonso.
“Anti narcotic agents were immediately set out and they successfully arrested the two sponsors. All four suspects have been arrested and are currently under investigation” Hamza stated.
Answering reporter’s questions, 35-year-old Ogechukwu, an apprentice at Idumota market, said he was offered N200,000 to smuggle the drugs from Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirate, (UAE) by Vitalis.
“I am looking for money to marry and settle down. If I had known that it will end this way, I would have rejected the offer. I am still working for my master at Idumota. I am from Anambra State,” he said.
Thirty-five-year-old Vitalis, who works in a restaurant in Brazil, did not deny the allegation. He said he did not own the drugs, adding that he was paid 3,000 US dollars to smuggle the drugs from Brazil to Abu Dhabi which he successfully did it.
Vitalis who hails from Anambra State, said he recruited Ogechukwu to convey the drugs from Abu Dhabi to Lagos, where the owners would link up with him and collect the consignment.
Thirty-nine-year-old Nnoli Oliver Uchenna who was caught with 74 wraps of cocaine weighing 1.255 kilograms said he was given the drugs by Ekwe Paul Chinonso at Abu Dhabi promising to pay him N200,000 when he successfully deliver the consignment in Lagos.
Nnoli, who hails from Anambra State, said he was assured that by hiding the wraps in his underwear and walking normal, he would not be arrested and that was why he accepted the deal.
Ekwe, a trader who hails from Imo State, said he was paid $4,000 to smuggle the drugs from Brazil to Abu Dhabi, adding, “All I know is that I was given 4,000 dollars to take the drug from Brazil to Abu Dhabi. It was in Abu Dhabi that I gave it to Nnoli Oliver Uchenna. I wanted to use the 4,000 dollars to buy artificial female hair for the end of year sales.
Commenting, Chairman and Chief Executive of the NDLEA, Ahmadu Giade, who commended his men for the arrest, said the agency has fortified Nigeria in a way that any trick or route used by drug traffickers will not be successful.
“I am glad that the suspects were arrested. Their plan of recruiting different couriers to take the drugs from Brazil to Abu Dhabi and another set to take the drugs to Nigeria has been blocked.”