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’Swallowed drug haul killed Tanzanian’
2006-01-03 08:39:40
By Guardian Reporter and Agencies
The Tanzanian who died in Blantyre, Malawi, shortly after arriving from Johannesburg last week, was killed by a haul of narcotics he had swallowed, Malawian authorities have confirmed.
Police sources said yesterday that Abdallah Said Mohamed died from’massive’ poisoning after some of the more than 100 pellets of cocaine he had ingested burst in his stomach.
Mohamed died at a health centre near Blantyre’s Chileka Airport last Thursday after he was taken ill aboard an Air Malawi flight from Johannesburg.
Initial reports said Mohamed was on his way back to Tanzania from Qatar, but other sources said the deceased was travelling home from Iran, although it was not clear why he had chosen the long route through Johannesburg. Unconfirmed reports said the deceased had planned to travel to Tanzania by bus from Malawi.
Mohamed was reportedly in the company of two other Tanzanians who had also boarded the Air Malawi flight in Johannesburg.
His colleagues were being held in Blantyre for questioning, police said yesterday.
”We can confirm that two people holding Tanzanian passports are being questioned in connection with the incident,’ a Malawian police officer was quoted as saying yesterday.
Efforts by The Guardian to get more information proved futile after the Interpol office in Dar es Salaam referred this reporter to the Director of Criminal Investigations, Adadi Rajabu, who could not be reached for comment as he was said to be attending an important meeting.
Passengers travelling on the Air Malawi plane told reporters in Blantyre that the Tanzanian became jittery and began sweating profusely midway through the flight.
He also visited the toilet frequently and his abdomen appeared to be swelling.
Mohamed was rushed to a health centre near the airport, shortly after the flight arrived in Blantyre, but he died as doctors struggled to save his life.
The body was later moved to the city’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital for a post-mortem.
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