National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a man, Gabriel Patrick, for allegedly ingesting 96 wraps of cocaine at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA) Abuja, spokesman, Femi Babafemi, said in a statement yesterday.
The 44-year-old father of three excreted the wraps while in their custody, Babafemi said.
Patrick was arrested on November 26 during an outward clearance of Turkish Airline at the boarding screening area of the airport en route Abuja-Istanbul-Madrid.
The statement reads, “He had travelled to Germany in 1996 for two years on asylum after which he relocated to Spain in 1999 where he currently holds a residence permit and works as a driver in a food manufacturing company. He claimed he came into Nigeria on 17th November to sell clothes and car spare parts he shipped to Lagos earlier.
“He, however, said he couldn’t sell his consignments, which cost him 4,000 Euros excluding the cost of shipment because they were priced below the cost price at Ladipo market in Lagos and he needed to travel back to Spain to resume work after the expiration of his annual leave.
“This, he said, led him to accept an offer to traffic the drug for which he would be paid 1,500 Euros when he successfully delivers the consignment to someone in Spain. He claimed he left Lagos for Enugu to see his family members, and then travelled on 25th Novemner to Onitsha, Anambra State where he was picked from Upper Iweka Park at night and taken to a house where he was given the 96 pellets of cocaine to ingest before leaving for Abuja to board his flight to Madrid the following day.”
Babafemi said five students of American University of Nigeria, Yola, and University of Maiduguri, were among suspects arrested for drug offences in raids across nine states in the last week.
In Ondo State, a 72-year-old man, Emmanuel Akanbi, was arrested at Odofin camp, Uso, Owo council allegedly with 2,050kg of cannabis.
Several other persons were also reportedly arrested with sundry narcotics in various parts of the country, the NDLEA said.
