A 65-year-old woman, Hauwa Abulazeez, has been arrested by troops of the Joint Task Force (North-East), Operation Hadin Kai, over her alleged role in supplying illicit drugs to Boko Haram terrorists operating in parts of Borno State.
The military disclosed on Sunday that the suspect was apprehended in Askira Uba Local Government Area during an intelligence-led operation aimed at dismantling terrorist logistics and criminal support networks in the North-East.
The Media Information Officer of Operation Hadin Kai, Lieutenant Colonel Sanni Uba, said the arrest was carried out on January 23 under Operation Desert Sanity V, describing it as a “significant breakthrough” in efforts to degrade the operational capacity of insurgent groups in the region.
According to him, preliminary investigations revealed that Abulazeez was a key conduit in the supply and distribution of cannabis sativa to Boko Haram elements operating in Askira Uba, Rumirgo, Gwahi, Wamdiyo, Uvu and Gaya communities.
“She allegedly sourced the illicit substance from Sarti Baruwa Local Government Area of Taraba State and transported it through established supply routes into Borno for onward distribution to terrorist elements,” Uba said.
During the operation, troops recovered 14 compressed blocks of cannabis sativa, weighing about 30 kilogrammes, which the Army said were intended to sustain criminal and terrorist activities across the theatre of operation.
The suspect is currently in military custody and undergoing preliminary investigation, while follow-up operations have been launched to identify and dismantle other members of the trafficking and distribution network.
Military authorities said the interception underscored the growing emphasis on choking off logistics and funding channels that fuel terrorism, banditry and violent crimes in the North-East, where Boko Haram and its splinter faction, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), have waged a deadly insurgency for over a decade.
“The denial of illicit supply chains remains critical to weakening terrorist groups and restoring lasting peace in affected communities,” Uba added, assuring that troops would continue intelligence-driven operations to confront all forms of criminality in the region.
The arrest comes amid renewed efforts by security agencies to target not only gunmen and fighters but also the shadow networks that sustain insurgency through drugs, arms, food supplies and financing, often using unsuspecting civilians, women and the elderly as couriers to evade detection.
In a related development, operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency recently intercepted a woman transporting live ammunition believed to be destined for bandits terrorising parts of Zamfara State. The suspect was reportedly arrested during a stop-and-search operation along the Tsafe–Gusau highway, with ammunition concealed in her luggage.
The Chairman of Tsafe Local Government Area, Malam Garba Shehu, confirmed the arrest, describing it as a major breakthrough in the clampdown on criminal logistics networks and warning that anyone found aiding banditry would face the full weight of the law.
Security experts say the twin arrests highlight the evolving tactics of criminal and terrorist groups, which increasingly rely on covert civilian networks to sustain operations, underscoring the need for sustained intelligence sharing and community vigilance across Nigeria’s conflict-prone regions.
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