Ex-international footballer, accomplice jailed 24 years for cocaine trafficking

A former international footballer, Segun Hunkarin, and a fugitive drug kingpin, Ntoruka Chinedu, 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 finding the duo guilty of offences relating to the unlawful importation of 7.05 kilograms of cocaine.

According to a statement on Monday by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi, Chinedu was first arraigned in September 2015 over the importation of 6.25kg of cocaine but absconded after being granted bail, remaining at large for nearly 10 years.

The agency said he was re-arrested on June 24, 2025, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, while attempting to smuggle another 800 grams of cocaine into the country aboard an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Addis Ababa.

NDLEA said investigations revealed that Chinedu had travelled from Turkey and transited through Ethiopia, where he allegedly collected the cocaine-laden luggage before arriving in Nigeria.

The agency added that Hunkarin, who had previously played professional football in Brazil, was arrested at the airport car park while waiting to receive the consignment.

According to the NDLEA, Hunkarin admitted in his statement that he had trafficked drugs twice from Brazil to Ethiopia during his football career in South America.

“Investigation showed that the convict was coming from Turkey on Ethiopian Airlines flight but transited through Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where he collected the luggage from another person before heading to Nigeria.

“Further checks revealed that an accomplice who turned out to be a former professional footballer, Segun George Hunkarin, was waiting for Chinedu at the airport carpark to collect the consignment from him. Hunkarin, who had stayed for years in Brazil playing for football clubs, was promptly tracked and arrested at the carpark, ” the statement said.

Both men were subsequently arraigned on a three-count charge of conspiracy and unlawful importation of 800 grams of cocaine.

Delivering judgment on Friday, Justice Kakaki sentenced Chinedu to 20 years imprisonment without an option of fine for the 2015 cocaine importation case and an additional two years for conspiring with Hunkarin to import the 800 grams of cocaine, bringing his total sentence to 22 years.

Hunkarin was sentenced to two years imprisonment for conspiracy, bringing the combined jail terms to 24 years.

During the trial, NDLEA prosecutor Adekunle Adebajo reminded the court that Chinedu had earlier been arraigned before Justice Salihu Saudi in 2015 but jumped bail before the conclusion of his trial. He urged the court to convict the defendants in line with the provisions of the NDLEA Act.

Counsel for the convicts pleaded for leniency and asked the court to impose fines instead of custodial sentences, but the court rejected the request.

Reacting to the judgment, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), described the conviction as a reaffirmation of the judiciary’s commitment to combating drug trafficking.

Marwa said, “The eventual re-arrest of Chinedu after nearly 10 years on the run demonstrated the doggedness, patience and thoroughness of NDLEA operatives in tracking down fugitives and ensuring that no drug trafficker escapes the long arm of the law.”

He also commended officers involved in the arrest, investigation and prosecution of the case, reiterating the agency’s commitment to working with the judiciary and other stakeholders to ensure that drug traffickers are brought to justice regardless of their status or how long they evade arrest.