By Ifeanyi Okolie

Suspected drug convict, Duru

A former drug convict, Chukwunyere Enoch Duru (39), stunned operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos recently, when he confessed that he swallowed a combination of 65 wraps of cocaine and heroine in order to meet up with his family obligations. Painting a pathetic picture of the circumstances that made him take such risk, the suspect who hails from Nnewi South in Anambra State stated that it was not his wish to go back into drug trafficking after this conviction for same offence in 2009. “ I know what I passed through in the prison. While in prison I lost everything because my landlord threw my belongings out of my apartment. My wife and three children are now living with her parents. I was ashamed and needed to work hard as a man. I went to my village in Anambra State and was working with a water bottling factory. Even though my monthly salary was N9,000, yet my payment was irregular. I worked for three months without salary.

“It was at that point that my determination began to wane as I struggled to meet up with my obligations as the bread winner of my family. I was wasting away in the village when I got the offer to smuggle drugs to Australia. They also promised to secure a job for me there. I was not comfortable with the drug deal and up till the time I began swallowing the drugs, it was not my wish. Deep down my heart, I wept. My target was to get a job but the drug condition was a difficult one. They assured me of easy passage, that all the security units had been settled. My name and passport number was also taken to a pastor for prayers. Those measures gave me some hope, unfortunately I was still caught. Now, I really feel bad and do not know where to start from. My greatest concern is my wife because I do not know how she will react to. my arrest. I had sworn to her that I will never indulge in drug trafficking” Dunu lamented.

Crime Alert learnt that the drug convict, was nabbed on February 16, 2011 and has been under observation but completely expelled the drugs he swallowed last Monday night. The final analysis of the drugs carried out later revealed that he excreted 65 wraps of substances that tested positive to both cocaine and heroin. Six of the wraps tested positive for heroin weighing 130 grammes while 59 wraps was found to be cocaine weighing 900 grammes, thus bringing the total weight to 1.030kg. The unrepentant drug trafficker was to board Emirates flight to Sidney, Australia through Dubai when he was caught.

NDLEA Airport Commander, Alhaji Hamza Umar, told Crime Alert that the ex_convict was first arrested on June 12, 2009 with 1.114kg of heroin while attempting to board Emirates flight to Australia. “The suspect was arraigned and subsequently sentenced to one year imprisonment. It is not long he completed his jail term and he is back into drug trafficking. His desperation has even made him to swallow both cocaine and heroin. This is really sad” Hamza stated.

The Chairman of NDLEA, Ahmadu Giade while calling on stakeholders to be more committed to drug control programmes stressed that the Agency will work tirelessly to stop drug traffickers. “The reality of the drug problem demands that every stakeholder must join forces with the Agency. Drug control is a collective responsibility. We must all work towards a drug free society of our dream. Parents, teachers, religious leaders, traditional rulers, non_governmental organizations and the judiciary must work together. On our part, unless drug barons quit the obnoxious trade, we shall continue to arrest them and seize their illicit drugs” Giade vowed. He described Dunu’s arrest as a dangerous trend adding that it was not the first case of a recidivist being arrested by the Agency. He therefore said that the development calls for drastic measures and assured that the suspect will be charged to court soon.