In a tense and life-threatening ordeal, 59-year-old businessman, Chijioke Nnanna Igbokwe narrowly escaped death after undergoing a daring surgery to remove 57 pellets of cocaine from his stomach.
The businessman had ingested the narcotics in an attempt to smuggle them from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, into Lagos, but the drugs became trapped inside his body for seven days, leading to grave health complications.
Igbokwe was initially arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on January 26, 2025, at Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) after a scan revealed illicit drugs in his system. The suspect, who claimed to run a cloth business in Lagos, had traveled to Addis Ababa where, according to his admission, he ingested 81 pellets of cocaine to smuggle them to Beirut.
However, upon arrival in Beirut, he was denied entry and returned to Addis Ababa, where he struggled to expel the drugs before flying to Lagos. After being placed under observation by NDLEA officers, the businessman managed to expel 24 pellets of cocaine but faced mounting health issues due to the other 57 cocaine pellets he had swallowed.
Realizing both the gravity of his condition and the ticking clock, he was eventually admitted to Lagos State University Teaching Hospital for an exploratory laparotomy operation. After his family authorized the procedure, surgeons successfully extracted the remaining cocaine, weighing a total of 1.943 kilograms.
Meanwhile, other NDLEA operatives had a significant week, intercepting large drug quantities in multiple parts of Lagos. On January 29, they seized a shipment of 2,000 kilograms of “Ghanaian Loud” cannabis at Lekki beach and arrested two suspects tying to transport the drugs. Another suspect, Lawal Idris Olasunkanmi, was caught with 55 kilograms of cannabis during a raid in Lagos’ Mushin area.
Another suspect arrested with hard drugs
The NDLEA continued its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) initiative with widespread sensitization programs at various schools, worship centers, and community hubs across the country. Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd.), Chairman/CEO of NDLEA, commended the agency’s personnel for their vigilance and caution when handling such a high-risk case.
He also urged citizens to avoid involvement in the dangerous drug trade, noting the severe health and legal consequences.
Igbokwe
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