Seven years’ jail for attempting to import half-kilo of cocaine from Brussels

The man was sentenced to seven years' imprisonment and fined €5,000, which if not paid would be converted to a longer prison sentence

Eddy Favour Imeh was found to have swallowed 46 capsules of the drugs before boarding his flight from Brussels
Eddy Favour Imeh was found to have swallowed 46 capsules of the drugs before boarding his flight from Brussels

A Nigerian man will be spending the next seven years in prison after he was found guilty of having trafficked 588 grams of cocaine into Malta from Brussels, three years ago. 

When he was arrested in August 2013, Eddy Favour Imeh was found to have swallowed 46 capsules of the drugs before boarding his flight from Brussels. The Nigerian was charged with conspiring to traffic cocaine and with aggravated possession of the drug, for the purposes of trafficking.

Imeh had conspired with persons abroad, agreeing to act as a drug mule by carrying a large quantity of cocaine on his person. The drugs were to be delivered to another individual in Malta upon arrival. The accused was to receive more precise instructions after his arrival. 

The court was told that the accused had been promised €36 for each capsule he swallowed, and had intended to swallow 100. However, he only managed to ingest 46. Upon his arrival at Malta International Airport, authorities had searched the accused. The capsules, which are thought to have a street value approaching €37,000, were detected in the accused's digestive system after an X-Ray was performed. 

Before Judge Antonio Mizzi, the accused had pleaded guilty to the charges, admitting that the cocaine had been intended for sale. 

Imeh was sentenced to seven years imprisonment and fined €5,000. The court ordered the accused to pay the fine within 15 days, warning that a failure to comply would mean the fine would be converted into a longer prison sentence.