Okemawalan Ugo Buchiprowled nightspots at Clarke Quay (left) and coffeeshops around Bencoolen, befriending and courting local women, before using them as drug mules. -- ST FILE PHOTOHE would prowl nightspots at Clarke Quay and coffeeshops around Bencoolen, befriending and courting local women, before using them as drug mules.
Nigerian Okemawalan Ugo Buchi, 31, was detained under the Criminal Law (Temporary Provisions) Act on Thursday for recruiting Singaporean women as drug couriers and organising their drug runs for a West African drug syndicate.
Details of his modus operandi emerged following month-long investigations by the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB).
Okemawalan, known to his associates as 'Malik', 'Michael' and 'Ugo', would live off the women he lured until they could not support him financially.
When money became a problem, he would offer the unsuspecting women a chance to earn easy money: deliver bags of 'clothing samples' to China and Europe, and be paid between $700 to $2,000 when they came back.
Unbeknown to them, the clothing samples were actually drugs; and the women were being used as drug mules.
Between December 2008 and March 2009, Okemawalan organised at least ten such trips, with each trip being done by one of his handful of 'girlfriends'.
In some cases, an 'experienced' girl, who had been on such trips before, went with a 'newbie'. Once the 'newbie' learnt the ropes, she would go alone or take on other 'newbies'.
Also detained was his Singaporean woman accomplice for her involvement in drug smuggling activities with the syndicate.
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