Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested former international footballer, Segun George Hunkarin, and his businessman partner, Ntoruka Emmanuel Chinedu, over an attempt to smuggle cocaine into Nigeria through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.

Chinedu, a frequent traveller known for importing clothes from Turkey and exporting foodstuffs from Nigeria, was apprehended on Tuesday, June 24, 2025, at Lagos airport. A search of his carry-on bag revealed 37 wraps of cocaine, weighing 800 grammes, concealed inside.

Preliminary investigations showed that Chinedu had flown from Turkey on an Ethiopian Airlines flight and collected the illicit substance during a transit stop in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, before continuing to Nigeria. Further checks led to the arrest of Hunkarin, who was waiting in the airport car park to collect the package.

Hunkarin, who spent several years playing professional football in Brazil, admitted in his statement to trafficking drugs twice from Brazil to Ethiopia, but denied ever smuggling drugs into Nigeria.

In a separate operation, Europe-based businessman, Amen Okoro Godstime, was arrested on Friday, June 27, 2025, at the same airport while attempting to traffic 5,000 pills of tramadol 225mg disguised as malaria drugs such as Lonart, Amatem, and Aluktem. He was intercepted during passenger clearance for a Royal Air Maroc flight to Spain via Casablanca.

Okoro, who manages a freight and logistics business between Europe and Nigeria, claimed he intended to ship the consignment from France to Italy for distribution after arriving in Spain and taking a train to his residence in France.

On the same day, NDLEA operatives at Akanu Ibiam International Airport (AIIA), Enugu, intercepted Ezenwaka Chibuzor Emmanuel, a Mozambique-based bar attendant. A search of his luggage uncovered 17 parcels of methamphetamine weighing 17.5 kilogrammes and three parcels of cocaine weighing 3.05 kilogrammes, concealed in bedsheets.

The 38-year-old suspect, who had travelled from Johannesburg, South Africa, via Addis Ababa on an Ethiopian Airlines flight, was arrested during routine checks.