Thirty-eight-year-old Darlugar Ufondu Steven, an assistant coach in an amateur football club in South Africa, has been arrested for drug trafficking.
The suspect was arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency.
Steven was prevented from smuggling the drugs, believed to be methamphetamine, from Lagos to South Africa.
Steven told investigators that he embraced drug trafficking because he was under immense financial pressure.
His words: “I’m married with a child.
“I’ve lived in South Africa for about a decade.
“I have worked very hard to attain financial freedom but have nothing in return.
“This is my first time of smuggling drugs.
“I was under financial pressure to cope with peers.
“A friend introduced me to drug trafficking as a way of making quick money.
“The barons promised to pay me $6,000 to take the bag containing the drugs to South Africa.”
The spokesman of the NDLEA, Mitchell Ofoyeju, said of the arrest of Steven: “The arrest and drug seizure took place at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Lagos during the outward screening of Arik Air passengers to South Africa. The drug was concealed in a false compartment of the suspect’s luggage.”
The NDLEA commander at the Lagos airport, Hamza Umar, said: “Steven was apprehended on his way to South Africa. He was found in possession of 1.535kg of substances that tested positive for methamphetamine.”
The Chairman of the NDLEA, Ahmadu Giade, called on members of the public to support drug control efforts.
Giade said: “We have made remarkable improvement in our counter-narcotic efforts. The Agency is prepared to detect hidden drugs and prosecute the drug barons. Members of the public should avoid drug trafficking and report suspected cases to the Agency.”