NDLEA Nabs Ex-Convict with 817 Wraps of Cocaine Worth ₦4.6bn at Lagos Airport

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) recently apprehended Christian Ogbuji, a 48-year-old ex-convict, at Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos.

Ogbuji was caught attempting to import 817 wraps of cocaine weighing 19.40 kilograms, with an estimated street value of ₦4.656 billion ($2.93 million). This arrest marks a major milestone in the agency's ongoing battle against international drug cartels.

Ogbuji, who had previously been convicted for smuggling 93 pellets of cocaine in May 2023, was arrested just 16 months after his initial conviction. His first arrest occurred at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja, where he arrived from Uganda via Addis Ababa on Ethiopian Airlines flight ET 951. He had ingested 93 pellets of cocaine weighing 1.986 kilograms.

Following his conviction on July 13, 2023, he received a two-year prison sentence but opted to pay a ₦3 million fine instead. The court also ordered the forfeiture of the cocaine, his international passport, and foreign currency found on him at the time of arrest.

Despite his previous conviction, Ogbuji resumed his illegal activities. On the day of his recent arrest, he initially cleared a black travel bag through inspection but later returned to the carousel area to hide a black backpack inside the cleared bag. Alert NDLEA officers intercepted him as he attempted to leave, and a secondary search revealed the concealed cocaine.

During interrogation, Ogbuji admitted to leaving the backpack on the carousel as a strategy to evade detection, assuming that having his luggage cleared once meant he would not be subjected to further searches. He also revealed that he had obtained a new international passport to continue his illegal activities.

The NDLEA disclosed that Ogbuji is a key figure in a drug trafficking network spanning Brazil, Ethiopia, Nigeria, and several West African countries, including Benin, Togo, Ghana, Liberia, and Cote d’Ivoire. Reacting to the arrest, NDLEA Chairman/CEO, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Marwa (Rtd), praised the officers involved in the operation, calling the seizure a major milestone in the agency’s fight against international drug cartels. He reaffirmed NDLEA’s commitment to disrupting the operations of drug syndicates in Nigeria.