A 59-year-old businessman, Chijioke Nnanna Igbokwe, was forced to undergo emergency surgery to remove 57 pellets of cocaine from his stomach after being arrested by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos.
Igbokwe had ingested 81 pellets of cocaine in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on January 23, but was unable to expel them.
He was arrested on January 26 after returning to Lagos, and was taken into NDLEA custody for excretion observation.
After five days, Igbokwe was only able to expel 24 pellets, and was subsequently admitted to a hospital for surgery.
The operation, known as exploratory laparotomy, was performed on January 30, and successfully removed the remaining 57 pellets of cocaine from his stomach.
The NDLEA also announced the seizure of 2,000 kilograms of Ghanaian Loud, a strain of cannabis, at Lekki beach, and the arrest of two suspects in connection with the shipment.
Additionally, another suspect was arrested with 55kg of skunk during a raid in the Mushin area of Lagos.
