Former Nigerian footballer Okafor Emmanuel has been arrested for the trafficking of cocaine.
Okafor was arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos.
The ex-footballer arrived in Nigerian from Sao Paulo, Brazil via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia with 1.40kg of crack cocaine concealed in his traveling bags.
Okafor who arrived in Nigeria on board an Ethiopian airlines flight was arrested following the discovery on Monday, September 26, 2022.
The anti-narcotic officers were able to get to where he hid the illicit substance in his luggage.
Videos show how @ndlea_nigeria officers at Lagos airport discovered cocaine concealed in bag handles by ex-footballer and black cocaine in bags’ false bottom by another Brazilian returnee pic.twitter.com/biX2A19qrm
— NDLEA NIGERIA (@ndlea_nigeria) October 2, 2022
Okafor is a 33-year-old indigene of Arochukwu Local Government in Abia State and disclosed to the NDLEA his journey into drug trafficking.
He explained that he was a professional footballer just some years ago in the Nigerian National League (NNL).
Okafor was a key player for NNL side University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, UNTH in Enugu FC for four seasons.
Like most Nigerian footballers he traveled abroad in search of greener pastures. In 2014, Okafor left the shores of Nigeria for Sri Lanka and after two seasons moved to Brazil.
He could not continue his professional football ambitions in Brazil due to the lack of official documents hence his return to the country.
The NDLEA uploaded a video of discovered cocaine concealed in the bag of Okafor on social media after the arrest.
