A 31-year-old man travelling on a Nigerian-issued passport appeared in Kempton Park Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday last week for dealing in drugs.
He was arrested after scanners at OR Tambo International Airport revealed he had swallowed drugs, which later turned out to be cocaine.
Ikenna Samson Otiko was arrested on Tuesday last week shortly after landing from a Sao Paolo, Brazil, flight. He was about to catch a connecting flight to Abuja, Nigeria.
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Members of the South African Police’s Transnational Investigation Unit took Otiko to the scanners after he failed to explain the exact nature of his visit to Brazil.
When he was taken through the scanners it was revealed the suspect had, indeed, swallowed something which, after the due process was followed, turned out to be drugs.
In total, the suspect was found to have swallowed more than half a kilogramme of cocaine. He was given ample time to release the drugs from his body which were later valued at almost R200 000.
His case was postponed to July 22 for further investigation and he has been remanded in custody.
Otiko was the seventh person to have been arrested at OR Tambo International Airport for dealing in drugs by the same unit in May. All of these suspects are currently behind bars awaiting trial.
