Two arrested drug kingpins by the National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have been sentenced to life imprisonment.
The two notorious drug kingpins were identified as Uwaezuoke Ikenna Christian and Agbo Chidike Prince.
A statement by the director of media and advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said that the two kingpins will spend the rest of their lives in jail and bringing to an end their years of criminal enterprise of exporting cocaine across the continents following their arrest and diligent prosecution.
“For 43-year-old businessman, Uwaezuoke’s journey to a lifetime in jail began when he was first arrested by NDLEA operatives on 19th March 19, 2022 at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja during the inward clearance of Ethiopian Airlines flight from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia where he was found to have ingested 100 big wraps of cocaine weighing 2.243 kilograms.
Babafemi stated that in a curious twist, Uwaezuoke was again arrested by NDLEA operatives on August 1, 2023, at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, while attempting to export 1.822 kilograms of cocaine to India through ingestion using a different passport and under a different name, Ilonzeh Kingsley Onyebuchi
“He was re-arraigned on March 20, 2024 at the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court in charge number FHC/ABJ/CR/438/2022 before Justice Joyce Obehi Abdulmalik, where he pleaded guilty again and despite his plea, the court, noting his lack of remorse, the seriousness of drug-related offences and the fact that he is a repeated offender, convicted and sentenced him to life imprisonment,” Babafemi said.
While in the case of 42-year-old Agbo Chidike Prince, he was arrested at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja during the outward clearance of Ethiopian Airlines flight to Hong Kong on October 21, 2023 for ingesting 49 wraps of cocaine weighing 998.73grams.
“Upon his arraignment before Justice Joyce Obehi Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court, Abuja Division, the defendant pleaded guilty to the one count charge, prompting the prosecution to present evidence and review the facts of the case.”