BY Maryam Abdullahi
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) says a Nigerian, who claimed to have recently returned from Spain, has been arrested with 96 pellets of cocaine at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja.
Femi Babafemi, NDLEA spokesperson, in a statement on Sunday, said the suspect, identified as Gabriel Patrick, had travelled to Germany on asylum in 1996, before he relocated to Spain.
According to Babafemi, Gabriel said he returned to Nigeria on November 17 to sell car spare parts and clothes and accepted to smuggle drugs when his business failed.
Gabriel, said to be a 44-year-old father of three children, was reportedly arrested during an operation at the airport.
“He had travelled to Germany in 1996 for two years on asylum after which he relocated to Spain in 1999 where he currently holds a residence permit and works as a driver in a food manufacturing company,” the statement reads.
“He claimed he came into Nigeria on 17th November to sell cloths and car spare parts he shipped to Lagos earlier.
“He, however, said he couldn’t sell his consignments, which cost him 4,000 Euros excluding the cost of shipment because they were priced below the cost price at Ladipo market in Lagos and he needed to travel back to Spain to resume work after the expiration of his annual leave.
“This, he said, led him to accept an offer to traffic the drug for which he would be paid 1,500 euros when he successfully delivers the consignment to someone in Spain.
“He claimed he left Lagos for Enugu to see his family members, and then travelled on 25th Nov to Onitsha, Anambra state where he was picked from Upper Iweka park at night and taken to a house where he was given the 96 pellets of cocaine to ingest before leaving for Abuja to board his flight to Madrid the following day.”
According to the statement, Buba Marwa, NDLEA chairman, commended the operatives for their efforts and urged them to remain focused on ensuring the eradication of illicit drugs in Nigeria.
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