Fugitive Drug Kingpin, Ex-International Footballer Sentenced to 24 Years for Cocaine Importation
The convicts
A fugitive drug kingpin, Ntoruka Emmanuel Chinedu, and former international footballer, Segun George Hunkarin, have been convicted and sentenced to a combined 24 years imprisonment by the Federal High Court in Lagos for the unlawful importation of 7.050 kilograms of cocaine into Nigeria.
The conviction was confirmed by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) through its Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, who disclosed that Justice Musa Kakaki handed down the sentence after finding both men guilty of drug trafficking offences.
According to Babafemi, Chinedu was first arraigned in September 2015 on a one-count charge, marked FHC/L/227C/2015, for unlawfully importing 6.250 kilograms of cocaine into the country.
He pleaded not guilty and was granted bail but absconded during the trial, remaining a fugitive for nearly a decade before he was rearrested by NDLEA operatives on June 24, 2025, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos.
The agency said Chinedu was intercepted while attempting to smuggle 800 grams of cocaine into Nigeria aboard an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Investigations revealed that although Chinedu had travelled from Turkey, he transited through Addis Ababa, where he allegedly collected a suitcase containing the illicit drug from another individual before continuing his journey to Nigeria. NDLEA said he was a frequent traveller known for transporting clothes from Turkey to Nigeria and food items from Nigeria to Turkey.
Further investigations led to the arrest of his alleged accomplice, Segun George Hunkarin, a former professional footballer who had played for clubs in Brazil. Hunkarin was reportedly waiting at the airport car park to receive the drug consignment when he was apprehended by NDLEA operatives.
In his statement to investigators, Hunkarin admitted that while playing professional football in Brazil, he had trafficked illicit drugs from Brazil to Ethiopia on two occasions.
Following their arrest, both men were arraigned on a three-count charge, marked FHC/L/669C/2025, for the unlawful importation of 800 grams of cocaine.
Delivering judgment on Friday, Justice Kakaki convicted the defendants and sentenced them to a combined 24 years’ imprisonment without the option of a fine.
The NDLEA described the conviction as a significant breakthrough in its sustained campaign against drug trafficking, reaffirming the agency’s commitment to tracking down fugitives and dismantling criminal drug networks operating within and outside Nigeria.
