Thailand-based Nigerian Caught With Drug At Lagos Airport.

A 22-year-old Nigerian, who lives in Thailand, Ilechukwu Ejikonye Jude, has been apprehended with 1.295kg of substances found to be methamphetamine on his way to Thailand. The drug, hidden inside the luggage of the suspect, was detected during the screening of passengers on Ethiopian Airline flight at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos. The suspect has confessed to investing N750,000 in drug trafficking. Speaking on the development, the Lagos airport commander of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Mr Hamza Umar, said the drug was carefully hidden in the suspects’ luggage. According to Ilechukwu, who said he was lured into the drug deal by a friend he met in Thailand,“I am a businessman. I relocated to Thailand lastyear where I buy goods and send to Nigeria. It was in Thailand that I met a man who introduced me to drug business. “He gave my number to his partner in Lagos who lodged me in a hotel. They made me to offer N750,000 as my contribution and promised me a handsome reward on arrival in Thailand. My focus was on the profit that will accrue to me, it was when I was arrested that I realised I had madea big mistake.” Also, a 36-year-old suspected drug trafficker, Akpata Martin Chukwudi, who was given $800 for ingesting 20 wraps of cocaine, while narrating his ordeal, said he ingested the drug in Brazil and was apprehended at the Lagos Airport. While he was on observation, the suspect allegedly excreted 20 wraps of cocaine weighing 350 grammes. “I saw hell trying to ingest the drugs in Brazil.They brought about 100 wraps but I was only ableto ingest 20. They were angry and disappointed but the more I force myself, the more difficult it was for me to swallow. “Eventually, they gave me $800 in anger insteadof $5,000. I actually decided to smuggle drugs because I needed money to settle my mother’s hospital bill”. NDLEA chairman, AhmaduGiade, said the agency would investigate all cases and bring drug culprits to justice.