Fugitive drug kingpin, ex-footballer jailed 24 years for cocaine importation
A fugitive drug kingpin who evaded justice for nearly a decade and a former international footballer have been sentenced to a combined 24 years imprisonment by the Federal High Court in Lagos for importing cocaine into Nigeria.
Justice Musa Kakaki handed down the sentences after convicting Ntoruka Emmanuel Chinedu and Hunkarin Segun George on separate drug trafficking charges arising from the unlawful importation of cocaine.
Chinedu, who had been on the run for almost 10 years after jumping bail, received a total sentence of 22 years without the option of a fine, while Hunkarin, a former professional footballer, was sentenced to two years imprisonment, also without the option of a fine.
According to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Chinedu was first arraigned in September 2015 on a one-count charge marked FHC/L/227C/2015 for unlawfully importing 6.250 kilogrammes of cocaine into the country. He pleaded not guilty and was granted bail but absconded during the trial and remained at large for nearly a decade.
The agency said Chinedu’s luck ran out on 24 June 2025, when NDLEA operatives re-arrested him at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, while attempting to smuggle 800 grammes of cocaine into Nigeria aboard an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Addis Ababa.
Investigators disclosed that Chinedu, who frequently travelled between Turkey and Nigeria transporting clothing and food items, had travelled from Turkey and transited through Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where he allegedly collected the cocaine-laden luggage from another individual before continuing to Lagos.
Further investigation revealed that an accomplice, later identified as former professional footballer Segun George Hunkarin, was waiting at the airport car park to receive the illicit consignment.
NDLEA operatives immediately tracked and arrested Hunkarin at the airport.
During interrogation, Hunkarin admitted that while playing professional football in Brazil, he had trafficked drugs twice from the South American country to Ethiopia.
Following their arrest, both men were arraigned on a three-count charge marked FHC/L/669C/2025 bordering on the unlawful importation of 800 grammes of cocaine.
Delivering judgment on 24 July 2026, Justice Kakaki sentenced Chinedu to 20 years imprisonment without an option of a fine for the earlier importation of 6.250 kilogrammes of cocaine.
The court also imposed an additional two-year prison term for conspiring with Hunkarin to import the 800 grammes of cocaine, bringing his total sentence to 22 years.
Hunkarin was convicted on the conspiracy charge and sentenced to two years imprisonment, bringing the combined jail terms for both convicts to 24 years.
While reviewing the facts of the case, NDLEA prosecuting counsel, Barrister Adekunle Adebajo, reminded the court that Chinedu had initially been arraigned before Justice Salihu Saudi, now retired, in 2015 but absconded after securing bail.
Adebajo urged the court to impose appropriate punishment in line with the provisions of the NDLEA Act, relying on several judicial authorities to support the prosecution’s case.
Counsel to Chinedu, Chief Benson Ndakara, and Hunkarin’s lawyer, Chief Emefo Etudo, pleaded with the court to temper justice with mercy and consider imposing fines instead of custodial sentences.
The court, however, rejected the plea after reviewing the evidence, legal submissions and exhibits tendered before it, sentencing both men to prison without the option of a fine.
Reacting to the judgment, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), praised the judiciary for what he described as a reaffirmation of the courts’ commitment to combating drug trafficking and ensuring offenders are brought to justice regardless of how long they evade arrest.
Marwa also commended the officers involved in the arrest, investigation and prosecution of the case, saying Chinedu’s re-arrest after nearly a decade as a fugitive demonstrated the agency’s persistence, patience and determination in tracking down wanted drug traffickers.
He reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to working closely with the judiciary and other stakeholders to ensure that all those involved in illicit drug trafficking, irrespective of their status or attempts to evade justice, are prosecuted in accordance with the law.
