Fifty-five-year-old, physically challenged Nigerian, Ambrose Okeke Ifedilichukwe, who was arrested last Thursday, at the Kotoka International Airport, Ghana, for swallowing pellets of powdered substances suspected to be cocaine has died.
Ambrose Okeke Ifedilichukwe
A 55-year old physicially challenged man named Ambrose Okeke Ifedilichukwe who was caught trafficking drugs last Thurdsay, at the Kotoka International Airport, Ghana, has passed away due to the effect of the pellets of powdered substances suspected to be cocaine which he swallowed.
According to the Vanguard, the death of the culprit of Igbo descent which took place on Saturday evening occurred following a surgical operation at the 37 Military Hospital, where 46 of the pellets were removed from his body.
Ghanaian Times report he had earlier confessed to officials of the Narcotics Control Board (NACOB) during interrogation that he swallowed the substance to be delivered to somebody for a fee.
NACOB is a Ghananian agency concerned with the formulation and enforcement of narcotics laws, as well as preventing the use, import, and export of narcotics.
Nii Lante Blankson, Deputy Executive Secretary in charge of Enforcement at NACOB, who disclosed yesterday, said he suspected that some of the pellets might have burst in the stomach.
He said Ifedilichukwe, who is physically-challenged, was on an Emirate flight from Cote d’ Ivoire en-route to Hong-Kong via Dubai, but while on the flight, the flight attendants noticed he was fidgeting.
On reaching the Kotoka International Airport, Mr. Ifedilichukwe, was handed over to airport officials who took him to the Aviation Clinic where it was observed that he had swallowed illicit substances.
Kotoka International Airport, Ghana
Mr. Blankson said NACOB personnel on duty at the airport, were consequently informed of the situation and they went to the clinic to interrogate the suspect, who admitted swallowing pellets of substance to be delivered to somebody for a fee of $6,000.