Ex-Footballer, Fugitive Drug Kingpin Jailed 24 Years for Cocaine Trafficking
A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has sentenced fugitive drug kingpin, Ntoruka Emmanuel Chinedu, and former professional footballer, Hunkarin Segun George, to a combined 24 years imprisonment without the option of a fine for importing cocaine into Nigeria.
Justice Musa Kakaki delivered the judgment on July 24, 2026, convicting the duo for their involvement in the unlawful importation of 7.050 kilograms of cocaine.
Chinedu received a total sentence of 22 years imprisonment, while Hunkarin was sentenced to two years for his role in the drug trafficking conspiracy.
According to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Chinedu’s legal troubles date back to 2015 when he was first arraigned before the Federal High Court over the importation of 6.250 kilograms of cocaine into Nigeria.
Although he pleaded not guilty and was granted bail, he jumped bail during the trial and disappeared, remaining a fugitive for nearly ten years.
His years on the run came to an end on June 24, 2025, when NDLEA operatives arrested him at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, shortly after he arrived aboard an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Addis Ababa.
Investigators said he had travelled to Ethiopia to collect another consignment of cocaine and was caught with an additional 800 grams of the illicit drug upon his return to Nigeria.
The agency also arrested his accomplice, Hunkarin Segun George, who was waiting in the airport car park to receive the drug consignment.
During investigations, Hunkarin admitted to NDLEA operatives that he had previously trafficked drugs on two occasions from Brazil to Ethiopia while pursuing his football career in South America.
The revelation marked a dramatic fall from professional football to organised drug trafficking.
Following their arrest, the duo were arraigned on fresh charges bordering on conspiracy and unlawful importation of cocaine.
In his judgment, Justice Kakaki sentenced Chinedu to 20 years imprisonment for the 2015 cocaine importation case and an additional two years for the fresh conspiracy charge, bringing his total jail term to 22 years.
Hunkarin was sentenced to two years imprisonment for his role in the conspiracy.
Reacting to the judgment, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd.), described the conviction as a significant victory in the agency’s sustained fight against illicit drug trafficking.
He commended NDLEA officers for their persistence in tracking down Chinedu after nearly a decade on the run and for successfully prosecuting both suspects.
Marwa said the judgment sends a strong message that no fugitive can permanently evade justice and reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to dismantling drug trafficking networks operating within and outside Nigeria.
