A Federal High Court in Lagos has sentenced a fugitive drug trafficker, Ntoruka Emmanuel Chinedu, and a former international footballer, Hunkarin Segun George, to a combined 24 years in prison for offences relating to the unlawful importation of 7.05 kilograms of cocaine into Nigeria.
Naijaonpoint reports that Justice Musa Kakaki handed down the sentences on Friday, July 24, 2026, following their prosecution by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency.
Chinedu, who had been on the run for nearly 10 years after jumping bail in an earlier cocaine trafficking case, received a total of 22 years imprisonment, while Hunkarin was sentenced to two years.
The NDLEA disclosed the development in a statement on Monday by its Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi.
According to the agency, Chinedu was first arraigned in September 2015 on a one-count charge marked FHC/L/227c/2015 for unlawfully importing 6.25kg of cocaine.
He pleaded not guilty and was granted bail but allegedly absconded midway through the trial.
The NDLEA said Chinedu remained at large for almost a decade before operatives rearrested him on June 24, 2025, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos.
At the time of his arrest, he was allegedly attempting to smuggle another 800 grams of cocaine into Nigeria aboard an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Addis Ababa.
The agency described Chinedu as a frequent traveller who moved clothes from Turkey to Nigeria and foodstuffs from Nigeria to Turkey.
Investigations showed that he travelled from Turkey through Addis Ababa, where he allegedly collected luggage from another person before proceeding to Nigeria.
Further investigations led NDLEA operatives to Hunkarin, a former professional footballer who had spent several years playing for clubs in Brazil.
The agency said Hunkarin was waiting at the airport car park to collect the cocaine consignment from Chinedu when operatives tracked and arrested him.
According to the NDLEA, Hunkarin stated during investigation that while playing professional football in Brazil, he had previously trafficked drugs from the South American country to Ethiopia on two occasions.
Chinedu and Hunkarin were subsequently arraigned on a three-count charge marked FHC/L/669C/2025 over the unlawful importation of 800 grams of cocaine.
Delivering judgment, Justice Kakaki sentenced Chinedu to 20 years imprisonment without an option of fine for the unlawful importation of 6.25kg of cocaine.
The judge imposed an additional two-year prison term, also without an option of fine, for conspiring with Hunkarin to unlawfully import the additional 800 grams of cocaine.
The sentences brought Chinedu’s total prison term to 22 years.
Hunkarin, meanwhile, received a two-year custodial sentence for conspiracy, bringing the combined sentences imposed on the two convicts to 24 years.
During proceedings, NDLEA prosecuting counsel, Adekunle Adebajo, reminded the court that Chinedu had previously been arraigned before the now-retired Justice Salihu Saudi in 2015 but disappeared after securing bail.
Adebajo cited relevant legal authorities and urged the court to sentence the defendants in accordance with the provisions of the NDLEA Act.
Chinedu’s lawyer, Chief Benson Ndakara, and Hunkarin’s counsel, Chief Emefo Etudo, pleaded for leniency and urged the court to consider fines instead of custodial sentences.
The court, however, rejected the request after considering the submissions, legal authorities and exhibits presented during the proceedings.
Reacting to the conviction, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), commended the judiciary, describing the judgment as further demonstration of its commitment to tackling drug trafficking.
Marwa also praised NDLEA personnel involved in Chinedu’s arrest, investigation and prosecution.
According to him, the rearrest of the convict after almost 10 years on the run demonstrated the agency’s “doggedness, patience and thoroughness” in tracking fugitives.
He said the development showed that no drug trafficker should expect to escape justice simply by remaining at large for an extended period.
