Umaru Dikko is a Nigerian politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

 and was a trusted adviser to President Shehu Shagari

Shehu Shagari

Shehu Usman Aliyu Shagari, Turakin Sakkwato served as the President of Nigeria's Second Republic , after the handover of power by General Olusegun Obasanjo's military government....

. He was also the Nigerian minister

Minister (government)

A minister is a politician who holds significant public office in a national or regional government. Senior ministers are members of the cabinet....

 for Transportation from 1979-1983.

He started playing a role in the nation's governance in 1967, when he was appointed as a commissioner

Commissioner

Commissioner is in principle the title given to a member of a commission or to an individual who has been given a commission ....

 in the then North Central State of Nigeria (now Kaduna State

Kaduna State

-History:The state is the successor to the old Northern Region of Nigeria, which had its capital at Kaduna. In 1967 this was split up into six states, one of which was the North-Central State, whose name was changed to Kaduna State in 1976. This was further divided in 1987, losing the area now part...

). He was also secretary

Secretary

A secretary, or administrative assistant, is a person whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project management, communication & organizational skills. These functions may be entirely carried out to assist one other employee or may be for the benefit...

 of a committee

Committee

A committee is a type of small deliberative assembly that is usually intended to remain subordinate to another, larger deliberative assembly—which when organized so that action on committee requires a vote by all its entitled members, is called the "Committee of the Whole"...

 set up by General

General

A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....

 Hassan Katsina

Hassan Katsina

Hassan Katsina was a Nigerian General and son of Usman Nagogo, the emir of Katsina from 1944-1981. He was governor of the Northern Region of Nigeria from 1966-1967...

 to unite the Northerners after a coup in 1966. In 1979, he was made Shagari's campaign manager

Campaign manager

A campaign manager is a paid or volunteer individual, whose role is to coordinate the campaign's operations such as fundraising, advertising, polling, getting out the vote , and other activities supporting the effort, directly.Apart from the candidate, they are often a campaign's most visible leader...

 for the successful presidential campaign of the National Party of Nigeria

National Party of Nigeria

The National Party of Nigeria was the dominant political party in Nigeria during the Second Republic .-Formation:The party's beginning could be traced to private and sometimes secret meetings among key Northern Nigerian leaders after the proscription of political parties in 1966 by the military...

. During the nation's Second Republic

Nigerian Second Republic

The Second Republic was the republican government of Nigeria between 1979 and 1983 governed by the second republican constitution.- Founding :...

, he played prominent roles as transport minister and head of the presidential task force on rice.

A coup on December 31, 1983 overthrew the government of Shagari. Dikko fled into exile in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 with a few other party officials.

On July 5, 1984, he played the central role in the Dikko Affair

Dikko Affair

The Dikko Affair was a 1984 Nigerian military government attempt to kidnap Umaru Dikko, a former Nigerian civilian government minister living in United Kingdom, and secretly transport him back to Nigeria in a diplomatic bag...

; he was found drugged

Drug

A drug, broadly speaking, is any substance that, when absorbed into the body of a living organism, alters normal bodily function. There is no single, precise definition, as there are different meanings in drug control law, government regulations, medicine, and colloquial usage.In pharmacology, a...

 in a crate

Crate

A crate is a large shipping container, often made of wood, typically used to transport large, heavy or awkward items. A crate has a self-supporting structure, with or without sheathing. For a wooden container to be a crate, all six of its sides must be put in place to result in the rated strength...

 labeled Diplomatic Baggage

Diplomatic bag

A diplomatic bag, also known as a diplomatic pouch is a kind of receptacle used by diplomatic missions. The physical concept of a "diplomatic bag" is flexible and therefore can take many forms e.g. an envelope, parcel, large suitcase or shipping container, etc...

at Stansted Airport

London Stansted Airport

-Cargo:-Statistics:-Infrastructure:-Terminal and satellite buildings:Stansted is the newest passenger airport of all the main London airports. The terminal is an oblong glass building, and is separated in to three areas: Check-in concourse, arrivals and departures...

, an apparent victim of a government (Nigerian) sanctioned, but aborted kidnapping

Kidnapping

In criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or transportation of a person against that person's will, usually to hold the person in false imprisonment, a confinement without legal authority...

. The crate's destination was Lagos

Lagos

Lagos is a port and the most populous conurbation in Nigeria. With a population of 7,937,932, it is currently the third most populous city in Africa after Cairo and Kinshasa, and currently estimated to be the second fastest growing city in Africa...

.