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Saturday, 23 February 2013
I saw hell trying to ingest drugs –Drug courier
For Martin Chukwudi Akpata, a self confessed drug courier, it is “double wahala” like the legendary Fela Anikulapo Kuti would say. Reason: while drug barons who sponsored the trip are dissatisfied with him, he has also been arrested by anti-drugs agents.
Martin Chukwudi Akpata has been telling operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agents the agony he went through trying to transport banned drug into the country. If given another chance, he claimed, he would not venture into the illicit trade because of his ordeal in the hands of his sponsors. Akpata, a native of Olo in Enugu State, was among the legion of young Nigerians “checking out” of the country in search of greener pastures after schooling, but he is ending his search for the Golden Fleece in jail, unless a miracle occurs.
The 36-year-old man had moved to Venezuela about two years ago where he worked as casual worker but he could not cope with the rigours of work in the South American nation. In January 2012, Akpata relocated to Brasilia, Brazil where he was soon introduced to a drug cartel.
At their first encounter, the cartel dangled a $5, 000 carrot before Akpata; he took the bait. When it was time for him to embark on his trip with the banned drug, he was told he would swallow 100 wraps of cocaine. But he could not do the whole 100 wraps, in the end, he could swallow only 20.
This drew the ire of his sponsors. “I saw hell trying to ingest the drugs. They brought about 100 wraps but I was only able to ingest just 20. They were angry and disappointed but the more I forced myself the more difficult it was for me to swallow,” Akpata told anti-narcotics agents at the Murtala Muhmmed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos after his arrest.
Once the cartel realised that he could not do the whole consignment placed before him, they quickly whisked him to the airport for his journey to Lagos with the banned substance weighing 350 grammes. For his inability to swallow all the wraps, the sponsors only gave him $800 for his effort. Upon landing in Lagos aboard the Qatar Airline flight that conveyed him from Brasilia, anti-narcotics agents subjected all passengers to search as they oft do in search for banned substance.
When he was detected to be in possession of the banned substance, he was whisked to the NDLEA observation room at the airport for tests. There, he reportedly excreted all the 20 wraps of drug he ingested earlier. In his confession further, Akpata claimed that he had disagreement with his sponsors over his inability to swallow all the consignments placed before him. He explained that his sick mother’s situation made him go into the illicit trade. “My mother is terribly sick back home and there is no one to look after her.
But I need money to take care of her and I felt this is the way I could make quick money for that purpose,” Akpata said. Chairman of the NDLEA, Alhaji Ahmadu Giade, commended the arrest of the suspect, saying, “Every arrest is a reassurance that the days of drug traffickers are numbered. I commend the arresting officers and urge them to remain vigilant at all times”.
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