About 23 Nigerian citizens have been arrested between 2016 and 2017 at King Abdul-Aziz International Airport, Jeddah and Prince Muhammad bin Abdu- Aziz International Airport, Madinah having been in possession of banned substances and concealed these substances in their rectums.
Citing a document, the Nation newspaper said the Nigerians were convicted for contravening the narcotic and psychotropic substances control law, which is punishable by death.
The names of the convicted persons were given as: 1) Adeniyi Adebayo Zikri 2) Tunde Ibrahim 3) Jimoh Idhola Lawal 4) Lolo Babatunde 5) Sulaiman Tunde 6) Idris Adewuumi Adepoju 7) Abdul Raimi Awela Ajibola 8) Yusuf Makeen Ajiboye 9) Adam Idris Abubakar 10) Saka Zakaria and 11) Biola Lawal.
Others person’s include: 12) Isa Abubakar Adam 13) Ibrahim Chiroma 14) Hafis Amosu 15) Aliu Muhammad 16) Ms. Funmilayo Omoyemi Bishi 17) Ms. Mistura Yekini 18) Amina Ajoke Alobi 19) Kuburat Ibrahim 20) Alaja Olufunke Alalaoe Abdulqadir 21) Fawsat Balagun Alabi 22) Aisha Muhammad Amira; and 23) Adebayo Zakariya.
This is coming a few weeks after the Saudi authorities executed Kudirat Afolabi for drug trafficking and Saheed Sobade, another Nigerian, reportedly nabbed with 1,183 grams of cocaine powder in Jeddah.
Defending the stance of the kingdom of drug trafficking, Adnan Mahmod Bostaji, Saudi ambassador to Nigeria, said sentences are only administered when there is evidence. He insisted that the country’s legal system is transparent and fair.
Adnan Bostaji also that about 1.5 million Nigerians live in the country and are engaged in legitimate businesses and they are not subjected to any form of molestation.
