Man jailed for smuggling cocaine in stomach at Dubai airport

A transit traveller, who was caught at the Dubai International Airport with 100 capsules of cocaine in his stomach, has been sentenced to 10 years in jail.

The Court of First Instance convicted the 42-year-old Nigerian man of the charge of smuggling drugs via transit, and ordered him to pay Dh100,000 worth of fine.

The sentencing will be followed by deportation, the court ruled, and ordered confiscation of the drugs.

The traveler was arrested on April 17.

"I was assigned to stand guard on the accused at the hospital. He had just been referred by the airport police officers after he was suspected of smuggling capsules containing drugs in his stomach," a policeman told the prosecutor, adding that he entered the operation room and witnessed as the doctors operated on the defendant to take the drugs out of his stomach.

"As many as 100 capsules containing drugs were found. I seized and handed them over to the anti-narcotics department," the police officer said.

According to a report from the General Directorate of Criminal Evidence, the 100 capsules seized from the accused contained cocaine and weighed 1.9 kgs.

The verdict has been appealed.

mary@khaleejtimes.com