Nigeria courts jail ex‑footballer and drug kingpin for cocaine importation

A Federal High Court in Lagos sentenced former international footballer Segun George Hunkarin and fugitive drug trafficker Ntoruka Emmanuel Chinedu to a combined 24 years in prison for importing cocaine into Nigeria. Justice Musa Kakaki found the men guilty of unlawful importation and conspiracy after the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) uncovered a shipment of about 7.05 kg of cocaine. Chinedu received 20 years for a 6.25‑kg import and an additional two years for the conspiracy, while Hunkarin was given two years for his role in the 800‑gram shipment.

Chinedu had originally been charged in 2015, fled bail and remained at large for nearly a decade before being rearrested on 24 June 2025 at Murtala Muhammed International Airport while attempting to smuggle cocaine aboard an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Addis Ababa. Hunkarin was arrested in the same airport’s car park awaiting the consignment.