Fugitive Drug Kingpin, Ex-International Footballer Jailed 24 Years for Cocaine Trafficking

A fugitive drug kingpin, Ntoruka Chinedu, and former international footballer, Hunkarin George, have been sentenced to a combined 24 years imprisonment for importing cocaine into Nigeria.

Justice Musa Kakaki of the Federal High Court in Lagos delivered the judgment on Friday after finding the duo guilty of conspiracy and unlawful importation of 7.050 kilograms of cocaine.

Chinedu, who was first arraigned in September 2015 on a one-count charge of importing 6.250 kilograms of cocaine, had pleaded not guilty and was granted bail. However, he absconded during the trial and remained on the run for nearly a decade.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) said he was re-arrested on June 24, 2025, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, while attempting to smuggle an additional 800 grams of cocaine into the country aboard an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Addis Ababa.

In his judgment, Justice Kakaki sentenced Chinedu to 20 years imprisonment without the option of a fine for the 2015 cocaine importation offence. He was handed an additional two-year jail term, also without the option of a fine, for conspiring with Hunkarin to import the 800 grams of cocaine, bringing his total sentence to 22 years.

His co-convict, Hunkarin George, was sentenced to two years imprisonment for the conspiracy charge.

The convictions bring the combined prison terms imposed on both men to 24 years, marking the conclusion of a case that began almost a decade ago after Chinedu fled while on bail before his eventual re-arrest by NDLEA operatives.