A pregnant woman and four other suspects have been arrested by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for attempting to smuggle 6.3kg of narcotics out of the country.
The agency, on Wednesday, disclosed that the pregnant suspect, Osatohanwen Esohe, 29, who was nabbed at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos for ingesting cocaine while trying to board an Alitalia flight to Rome, excreted 27 wraps of the drugs weighing 350g.
“Apart from Chukwuemeka Kingsley that ingested 1.4kg of heroin, Esohe and three others were smuggling 4.8kg of cocaine when they were caught,” said Mitchell Ofoyeju, spokesperson for the agency in a statement.
Hamza Umar, MMIA commander for the agency, disclosed that the pregnant suspect’s action shows no respect for human life, as he described the act as weird.
“They do not have respect for their own lives neither do they respect the dignity of their children,” he said. “This is the height of desperation by drug barons and their associates.”
Mr. Umar gave the names of the other four suspects that were recently apprehended as Arovo Moses, 42, who ingested 1.7kg of cocaine; Darlington Nwanwere, 48, ingested 1.3kg of cocaine; Okeke Anthony, 46, who ingested 1.46kg cocaine; and Chukwuemeka Kingsley, 34, who ingested 1.4kg heroin.
Explaining her reasons for involving in drug peddling, Ms. Esohe disclosed that she was rejected by the man who impregnated her, adding that she had to fend for herself in order to survive.
“I am three months pregnant, and the man that impregnated me refused to take responsibility,” she said. “That was how I got involved in drug trafficking. They promised to pay me 2,000 Euros and I needed the money to take care of myself and the unborn baby.”
According to the agency, Mr. Okeke, a trader and father of three who was to be paid 4,000 pounds, was nabbed on March 19, during screening of passengers on Virgin Atlantic flight to London, while Chukwuemeka Kingsley, the only suspect that ingested heroin, was arrested for swallowing 95 wraps of the substance while trying to board an Alitalia flight to Milan for the sum of 5,000 Euros.
The agency’s spokesperson, however, disclosed that the suspects are to be prosecuted according to the dictates of the law.
“All the suspects will soon be charged to court,” said Mr. Ofoyeju.
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