Les Vegas, Nev. – Federal drug charges have been filed against a German citizen after authorities caught him trying to board a plane from Las Vegas to London with over a kilo of cocaine secreted in plastic pellets inside his digestive system, announced Daniel G. Bogden, United States Attorney for the District of Nevada.

Christopher Adiegwu, 43, of Germany, is charged in a criminal indictment filed on August 30, 2011, with one count of possession of cocaine with the intent to distribute. If convicted, he faces five to 40 years in prison and a $5,000,000 fine. An arraignment has been set for September 9, 2011, at 8:30 a.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge C.W. Hoffman, Jr.

According to the court records, on August 17, 2011, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at McCarran International Airport conducted an inspection of Adiegwu prior to his boarding of a Virgin Airways flight to London after they became suspicious that Adiegwu was a narcotics carrier. Officers transported Adiegwu to a local hospital for an x-ray examination, which confirmed the existence of several dozen one-inch size pellets in his upper digestive system. Following the administration of a laxative, Adiegwu eliminated approximately 81 plastic pellets containing cocaine. The indictment alleges that the weight of the cocaine was approximately 1,195 grams or approximately 1.2 kilograms.

The court records state that Adiewgu is a citizen of Germany and native of Nigeria, and had arrived in the United States at Los Angeles International Airport on August 5, 2011, under a visa waiver admission.

The case is being investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (ICE HSI), and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly M. Frayn.

An indictment contains only charges and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

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