TheCitizen - It's all about you
  • Home
  • Headlines
  • Latest News
  • Governance
  • Business
  • Financial Crimes
  • Opinion
  • Editorials
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Headlines
  • Latest News
  • Governance
  • Business
  • Financial Crimes
  • Opinion
  • Editorials
No Result
View All Result
TheCitizen - It's all about you
No Result
View All Result

Profiles of 4 Nigerian, others on death row in Indonesia

The Citizen by The Citizen
April 25 2015
in Latest News, Uncategorized
A A
1

Nine foreign drug convicts are set to be executed in Indonesia after losing all appeals for clemency.

Here are brief profiles of the inmates, who include two from Australia, one each from Brazil, France and the Philippines, and four from Africa.

Myuran Sukumaran

A ringleader of the Bali Nine drugs smuggling syndicate, Sukumaran was born in London in 1981 and moved with his Sri Lankan family to Australia when he was a child.

He dropped out of university and became involved in the Sydney drugs and party scene. Enticed by the prospect of easy money, in 2005 he helped to organise a shipment of heroin destined for Australia, but was caught and sentenced to death a year later.

In this tv grab picture taken from Indonesian Metro TV on March 5, 2015, show undated photograph of Nigerian death row prisonerRaheem Agbaje Salami is seen in penitentiary in Madiun, eastern Java island and Silvester Obiekwe Nwolise in Nusakambangan prison.

Sukumaran said the shock of jail prompted him to change his life and he has become a model prisoner, teaching other inmates English and art.

Andrew Chan

Like Sukumaran, Chan, 31, also hails from Sydney. He was born in 1984 to Chinese-immigrant parents Ken and Helen, who spent some four decades running restaurants. Chan started taking drugs when he was 16 and said his parents were unable to control him.

Just two years after Chan’s parents retired, they were told their 21-year-old son had been arrested in Indonesia for being a ringleader of a heroin-smuggling gang. In jail he has become a committed Christian and, after six years of theology study, he was ordained as a minister in February.

Serge Atlaoui

A welder by trade and father of four, Atlaoui was nabbed in a 2005 raid on a secret drug laboratory outside Jakarta. The 51-year-old French national has maintained his innocence, claiming he was installing machinery in what he thought was an acrylics plant. But police describe him as a “chemist” in the massive drugs factory.

Atlaoui appealed against his life sentence only to have it upgraded to death in 2007. He has been detained on Nusakambangan island, the site of executions for Indonesia’s worst criminals, for 10 years.

His wife Sabine has been making the long journey from Europe to the remote island with their children –- including three-year-old Yasin –- for many years.

Mary Jane Veloso

Born to a poor family in the Philippines, Veloso, 30, is a single mother of two boys who insists she went to Indonesia for a job as a maid and was duped by an international drug syndicate.

She was arrested in 2009 with 2.6 kilograms (5.7 pounds) of heroin sewn into the lining of her suitcase.

Veloso says she was first offered a job by a friend in Malaysia, but upon her arrival she was told the work was actually in Indonesia so immediately flew there. She claims the heroin was secretly hidden in her suitcase in Malaysia.

Her sons, now aged six and 12, are spending her final days with her in Indonesia.

Rodrigo Gularte

Brazilian Gularte, 42, was arrested in 2004 while trying to enter Indonesia with six kilograms of cocaine stashed in his surfing gear.

His family have tried without success to obtain clemency for him by saying doctors have classed him as paranoid schizophrenic, which would normally see him transferred to a psychiatric facility.

Sylvester Obiekwe Nwolise

Nwolise is a 49-year-old Nigerian who was found guilty in September 2004 of trafficking 1.18 kilos of heroin through Sukarno-Hatta International Airport in Jakarta in 2002.

His clemency appeal was rejected in February this year.

The previous month, Indonesia’s national narcotics body said he was running a drugs ring in jail, according to Nigeria’s National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).

Okwudili Oyatanze

Fellow Nigerian Oyatanze, 45, was sentenced to death for trafficking heroin, also through Sukarno-Hatta airport in 2001.

His clemency appeal was rejected earlier this year.

Raheem Agbaje Salami

The NDLEA said Salami appears to be Nigerian but holds a Spanish passport and is thought to be also known by the name Jamiu Owolabi Abashin.

He entered Indonesia using a Spanish passport under the name Raheem Agbaje Salami.

He was caught with five kilos of heroin inside a suitcase at the airport in Surabaya, Indonesia’s second-largest city, on September 2, 1998 and was sentenced to life imprisonment the following year.

That was reduced by the high court to 20 years but he was later given the death sentence by the supreme court.

In this photograph taken on March 19, 2015, drug convict and death row prisoner Martin Anderson (C), recently identified by Indonesian authorities as Nigerian after earlier identifying him to be from Ghana, is escorted by police commandos during a judicial review hearing in Jakarta. Anderson is facing execution along with nine other foreign drug convicts who are set to be shot in defiance of international anger. The foreigners — two from Australia, one each from Brazil, France and the Philippines and four from Africa — have all lost appeals for mercy from President Jokow Widodo, who argues that Indonesia is fighting a drugs emergency. AFP

Previous Post

Police redeploy DIG, four AIGs, seven CPs for governorship re-run

Next Post

Sanitation: Lagos cancels restriction of movement for today’s exercise

Related Posts

Pres. Tinubu swears in two new ministers
Headlines

BREAKING: Tinubu approves expansion of Nigerian Army to 12 divisions

July 23 2026
Enugu Air aircraft skids off runway at Benin airport
Headlines

Enugu Air aircraft skids off runway at Benin airport

July 23 2026
Court jails three for life over Oyo school abduction
Headlines

Court jails three for life over Oyo school abduction

July 23 2026
FG mulls structures demolition for Lagos Coastal Highway service lanes, flood control
Business

PFIPC scandal: How CBN opened domiciliary accounts for phantom agency

July 21 2026
Nigerian soldiers now earn N100,000 monthly, says Defence Minister
Headlines

FG denies rumours of Defence Minister’s alleged resignation

July 21 2026
Tinubu appoints Fayose REA chairman, names 25 others
Appointments

Tinubu appoints Fayose REA chairman, names 25 others

July 20 2026
Next Post

Sanitation: Lagos cancels restriction of movement for today’s exercise

UNILAG’s best Student scores 4.96 CGPA

Comments 1

  1. Uzoh from Lagos says:
    11 years ago

    Desparation a b d greed for money,people should appreciate that this evil hurry can kill them very fast.someone arrester since 1998 and to be executed in 2015,where is the money anf success.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

FROM THE GRASSROOTS

Sokoto LG chairman quits APC, resigns from office

Sokoto LG chairman quits APC, resigns from office

by The Editor
July 8 2026
0

...

Bauchi Electoral Commission fixes August 17 for LG election

Bauchi Electoral Commission fixes August 17 for LG election

by The Editor
June 19 2026
0

...

Court grants indigenous status to Hausas born in Jos North

Court grants indigenous status to Hausas born in Jos North

by The Editor
June 11 2026
0

...

42-year-old Sheikh Dasuki emerges Chief Imam of Ilorin

42-year-old Sheikh Dasuki emerges Chief Imam of Ilorin

by The Editor
June 11 2026
0

...

APPOINTMENTS

Tinubu appoints Fayose REA chairman, names 25 others

Tinubu appoints Fayose REA chairman, names 25 others

by The Editor
July 20 2026
0

...

Tony Elumelu to step down as UBA chair, bank names successor

Tony Elumelu to step down as UBA chair, bank names successor

by The Editor
July 6 2026
0

...

Sahara Group appoints Folake Soetan as Arahas MD to drive oilfield services transformation across Africa

Sahara Group appoints Folake Soetan as Arahas MD to drive oilfield services transformation across Africa

by The Editor
July 3 2026
0

...

Tinubu appoints new NUC chairman

Tinubu appoints new NUC chairman

by The Editor
June 23 2026
0

...

ODDITIES

Nigerian woman in Canada demands husband swear oath against cheating before visa sponsorship

Nigerian woman in Canada demands husband swear oath against cheating before visa sponsorship

by The Editor
July 23 2026
0

75-year-old man bags 10 years jail for defiling minor

75-year-old man bags 10 years jail for defiling minor

by The Editor
July 16 2026
0

Court remands blogger over defamation of Soludo, son

Court remands blogger over defamation of Soludo, son

by The Editor
July 13 2026
0

GLOBAL NEWS

Xenophobia: Nigerian students funded your freedom – Shettima reminds South Africa

Xenophobia: Nigerian students funded your freedom – Shettima reminds South Africa

by The Editor
July 21 2026
0

...

US Congress okays bill to cut foreign aid to Nigeria

US Congress okays bill to cut foreign aid to Nigeria

by The Editor
July 17 2026
0

...

Nine European countries, Ukraine form defence coalition

Nine European countries, Ukraine form defence coalition

by The Editor
July 14 2026
0

...

Putin orders Russian nuclear forces on high alert

EU, UK hit Russia with joint sanctions over cyber attacks

by The Editor
July 14 2026
0

...

Reps in rowdy session over motion to summon Tinubu

Xenophobic attacks: Reps reject calls to suspend ties with South Africa

by The Editor
July 10 2026
0

...

State of the States

Lagos blames heavy rainfall for worsening road conditions

Lagos blames heavy rainfall for worsening road conditions

by The Editor
July 17 2026
0

...

Kogi govt confirms rescue of abducted principal, NECO official, two students

Kogi govt confirms rescue of abducted principal, NECO official, two students

by The Editor
July 17 2026
0

...

Anambra agency cracks down on illegal street trading, shanties in markets

Anambra agency cracks down on illegal street trading, shanties in markets

by The Editor
July 14 2026
0

...

Plateau Assembly moves to provide pensions for ex-lawmakers

Plateau Assembly moves to provide pensions for ex-lawmakers

by The Editor
July 10 2026
0

...

Plugin Install : Widget Tab Post needs JNews - View Counter to be installed
  • Trending
  • Comments
  • Latest
Pres. Tinubu swears in two new ministers

BREAKING: Tinubu approves expansion of Nigerian Army to 12 divisions

July 23 2026
Enugu Air aircraft skids off runway at Benin airport

Enugu Air aircraft skids off runway at Benin airport

July 23 2026
Court jails three for life over Oyo school abduction

Court jails three for life over Oyo school abduction

July 23 2026
Nigerian woman in Canada demands husband swear oath against cheating before visa sponsorship

Nigerian woman in Canada demands husband swear oath against cheating before visa sponsorship

July 23 2026

EDITORIAL REVIEW

Duty waivers must not become a fiscal hole – Punch

Duty waivers must not become a fiscal hole – Punch

by The Editor
July 20 2026
0

State airports: White elephant epidemic – Punch

State airports: White elephant epidemic – Punch

by The Editor
July 17 2026
0

Jega resonates loudly on Electoral Act underbelly – Punch

Jega resonates loudly on Electoral Act underbelly – Punch

by The Editor
July 14 2026
0

Almajiri Commission: Stop this budgeting absurdity – Punch

Almajiri Commission: Stop this budgeting absurdity – Punch

by The Editor
July 13 2026
0

Boko Haram destroyed over 500,000 houses in North-East – Agency

Deadly toll of living with terrorism – Punch

by The Editor
July 9 2026
0

Opinion

Remi Tinubu under fire over akara, roasted corn remarks

Beyond ‘akara’ leadership

by The Editor
July 6 2026
0

...

Trump’s U-turn on Iran war ends Israel’s Middle East dream

Trump’s U-turn on Iran war ends Israel’s Middle East dream

by The Editor
June 17 2026
0

...

Terrorists kidnap Army Major General, wife in Katsina

Slain General: When the protectors need protection

by The Editor
June 17 2026
0

...

Bandits attack mosque, kill 1, abduct 9 in Kaduna

When terrorism becomes the talk of town

by The Editor
June 9 2026
0

...

Plugin Install : Popular Post Widget need JNews - View Counter to be installed
  • Home
  • Headlines
  • Latest News
  • Governance
  • Business
  • Financial Crimes
  • Opinion
  • Editorials

© 2026 TheCitizen Ng. All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Headlines
  • Latest News
  • Governance
  • Business
  • Financial Crimes
  • Opinion
  • Editorials

© 2026 TheCitizen Ng. All Rights Reserved.