Repeat Offender Arrested With N4.6bn Cocaine At Lagos International Airport

Repeat Offender Arrested With N4.6bn Cocaine At Lagos International Airport....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

A 48-year-old businessman, Christian Ogbuji, labeled as an “unrepentant kingpin,” was re-arrested on Wednesday by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for alleged drug trafficking……CONTINUE READING 

Ogbuji was initially detained at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja on May 10, 2023, after arriving from Uganda via Addis Ababa on Ethiopian Airlines Flight ET 951. He had ingested 93 pellets of cocaine, weighing 1.986 kg, and was later charged in the Federal High Court in Abuja. On July 13, 2023, he was convicted and sentenced to two years in prison, with an option to pay a fine of N3 million, which he subsequently paid. He also forfeited the seized cocaine and his passport, while $14 and 9,000 Ugandan shillings were discovered on him at the time of his first arrest.

However, the NDLEA announced that 16 months later, on September 18, Ogbuji was arrested again with cocaine valued at N4.6 billion. According to NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi, he was apprehended at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos while going through customs after arriving on an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Addis Ababa. Ogbuji had initially presented a black travel bag for inspection, but in a deceptive maneuver, he returned to the baggage carousel to add a black backpack to the cleared bag.

As he attempted to exit the arrival hall, vigilant NDLEA officers intercepted him for a secondary search, during which they discovered large quantities of excreted cocaine concealed in the backpack. A total of 817 pellets weighing 19.40 kg, linked to various members of a drug cartel, were recovered.

During questioning, Ogbuji admitted to leaving the backpack at the carousel as part of his plan to evade detection, mistakenly believing that he wouldn’t face further scrutiny after his initial bag was cleared. He also revealed that he purchased a new passport to continue his illicit activities. Babafemi noted that Ogbuji is deeply entrenched in a drug trafficking network that spans Brazil, Ethiopia, Nigeria, and several West African countries, including Benin, Togo, Ghana, Liberia, and Côte d’Ivoire.