[dropcap]E[/dropcap]THIOPIAN police on Tuesday arrested three Nigerian nationals for alleged smuggling of a total of 43 kilograms of cocaine in their luggage.
The suspects were arrested on two different smuggling attempts at Addis Ababa Bole International Airport following a search on passengers that flew in from Sao Paulo, Brazil, the federal police said in a statement.
The alleged smugglers were flying from São Paulo airport to various countries via Addis Ababa Bole international airport with 1,895 pellets of cocaine.
They, however, were intercepted at Addis Ababa and arrested for illicit drug trafficking, said police, despite their futile attempt to initiate a brawl with airport workers and create chaos as a diversion to escape.
In another operation earlier this month, Ethiopian Police also seized 1,049 pellets of cocaine that weighed 12.38kg hidden in luggage belonging to a Brazilian Woman.
Police said the suspect, who was going from São Paulo to Dubai via Addis Ababa, was arrested and the drugs seized on Thursday, March 3, 2022.
In February, the Nigerian Police Force arrested five of its colleagues, including the country’s most decorated policeman, over their alleged involvement in drug cartel activities and for facilitating the movement of drugs across Nigeria, according to the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project.
OCCRP reported that mong the arrested was Abba Kyari, Commander of Intelligence Response Team (IRT) at the Force Intelligence Bureau of the Nigerian Police Force, according to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
