Man found with 81 plastic pellets of cocaine in digestive system at McCarran

By Jackie Valley

Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2011 | 11:49 a.m.

A German man caught trying to board a plane from Las Vegas to London while carrying more than a kilo of cocaine in his digestive system faces federal drug charges, the Nevada U.S. Attorney’s Office said Wednesday.

A criminal indictment filed Tuesday charges 43-year-old Christopher Adiegwu with one count of possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, officials said.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at McCarran International Airport conducted an inspection of Adiegwu on Aug. 17 before his boarding of a Virgin Airways flight to London, according to court records. The officers had become suspicious, for undisclosed reasons, that Adiegwu was a narcotics carrier.

Officers transported Adiegwu to a hospital for an X-ray examination, in which doctors found several dozen one-inch plastic pellets filled with cocaine in his upper digestive system, officials said. Adiegwu eliminated about 81 plastic pellets after taking a laxative.

The weight of the cocaine seized was about 1.2 kilograms, officials said.

Court records indicate Adiegwu is a citizen of Germany and a native of Nigeria. He had arrived in the United States at Los Angeles International Airport on Aug. 5 under a visa waiver admission, officials said.

Adiegwu faces up to 40 years in prison and a $5 million fine if convicted, officials said. His arraignment has been set for 8:30 a.m. Sept. 9 before U.S. Magistrate Judge C.W. Hoffman Jr.