Nigerian on death row in Indonesian writes goodbye letter to lover

A report said on Friday in Jakarta that a Nigerian facing execution in Indonesia for drug smuggling had written a heart-rending letter to say a final goodbye to his lover.

It said Raheem Agbaje-Salami, 42, was taken on Wednesday from a prison in East Java to a prison island off the southern coast of Java where he was due to be executed with nine other inmates this month.

In a letter submitted through the authorities, Agbaje-Salami asked his Indonesian girlfriend Angela Intan to be strong and have faith in God.

``I want to thank and say goodbye to my beloved sweetheart Angela Intan, who has stood beside me through happiness and sadness,’’ he said.

``Thank you for everything, for the time we spent together. Knowing and loving you has been a gift and even though it was only for a short time it has had a deep meaning in my life,’’ ,’’ the letter said.

Agbaje-Salami was sentenced to death for trying to smuggle heroin into Indonesia.

The authorities said two other Nigerian drug traffickers were also scheduled to be executed this month after requests for presidential clemency were rejected.