Daud Olatunji
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has re-arrested an 83-year-old woman, Uloma Sunday, for alleged drug trafficking in Abia State, about 17 months after she was convicted alongside her daughter for drug-related offences.
The latest arrest was part of a series of intelligence-led operations by the agency, which also led to the arrest of a South African woman allegedly trafficking 32.74 kilogrammes of cannabis, the interception of 354,000 tablets of tapentadol imported from Pakistan, and the recovery of large quantities of illicit drugs and firearms across several states.
The NDLEA also reported seizures of more than 3,000 kilogrammes of cannabis in separate operations in Cross River, Edo, Ondo, Kaduna and Lagos states, among other drug-related arrests and recoveries nationwide.
The agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, disclosed the operations in a statement on Sunday.
Babafemi said operatives re-arrested Sunday on October 7 at her residence in Ite-Uzo, Umuaguma, Obingwa Local Government Area of Abia State, following intelligence reports that she allegedly operated a drug joint frequented by criminal elements terrorising the community.
According to him, the octogenarian was allegedly found with consignments of methamphetamine and Colorado, a synthetic cannabis product, concealed around her waist with a wrapper.
The agency said Sunday was first arrested on May 17, 2025, alongside her 32-year-old daughter, Chisom Uchechi, at the same residence.
During the earlier operation, NDLEA operatives reportedly recovered 50 grammes of methamphetamine, 522 grammes of skunk, 260 grammes of fresh cannabis leaves and 12 grammes of tramadol.
Babafemi said the mother and daughter pleaded guilty to the offences and were sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment or an option of a N200,000 fine each.
He added that both women paid the fines and were released before the older woman was arrested again.
South African woman arrested with 32.7kg cannabis
In another operation, NDLEA operatives, working with the Nigeria Customs Service, arrested a 30-year-old South African woman, Gebashe Sithandiwe Jessie, at the Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa, Rivers State, over the alleged importation of 32.74 kilogrammes of Thai Loud, a strain of cannabis.
Babafemi said the 30 parcels of the substance were concealed in two travelling bags belonging to the suspect, who arrived from Thailand through Doha, Qatar, aboard Qatar Airways flight QR1431.
He said the suspect allegedly confessed to trafficking drugs through other African countries before attempting to extend her operations to Port Harcourt.
The agency also recorded a major seizure at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos, where operatives intercepted 354,000 tablets of tapentadol weighing 307.20 kilogrammes in a shipment of nine cartons from Pakistan.
According to Babafemi, the consignment arrived on September 29 aboard a Royal Air Maroc flight and was placed under surveillance before a joint examination on October 6 uncovered the tablets.
In a separate operation involving a shipment from the United Kingdom, operatives intercepted 70 parcels of Colorado weighing 75.90 kilogrammes concealed in six Ghana-Must-Go bags.
The shipment reportedly arrived on September 29, leading to the arrest of several suspects linked to its collection and clearance.
Babafemi said a 54-year-old clearing agent, John Edrah, was arrested on September 30, followed by Taofiq Ajibola, also 54, an Uber driver, who was allegedly caught while collecting one of the bags at a logistics company in Mafoluku, Oshodi, Lagos.
Adetunji Adebayo and Kazeem Damola Dosunmu, 48, a clothing trader, were subsequently arrested when they allegedly arrived to collect the remaining five bags.
The NDLEA spokesman said Ajibola identified a UK-based associate, Lukman Sa’idu, as the person who sent his consignment, while Dosunmu reportedly linked his own consignment to another UK-based man identified as Yusuf.
NDLEA seizes over 3,000kg of cannabis
The agency reported substantial cannabis seizures in several states, including the recovery of 1,100 kilogrammes of the substance in Cross River State.
Babafemi said operatives raided Iyala Nkun village in Ikom Local Government Area on October 4 and arrested a 46-year-old suspect, Adama Inuwa.
The operation reportedly led to the recovery of 181 bags of cannabis weighing 1,100 kilogrammes, alongside 17.15 kilogrammes of cannabis seeds.
In Edo State, operatives intercepted a black Toyota Camry conveying 1,049 blocks of compressed cannabis weighing 702.83 kilogrammes at Otuo, Owan East Local Government Area, on October 5.
Three suspects — Monday Orji, 52; Monday Lawal, 40; and Precious Uduegele, 20 — were arrested in connection with the seizure.
Another suspect, Ojugo Mercy, 26, was arrested at Asoro, off Sakponba Road, Benin City, with 989 grammes of Loud, 13 grammes of Colorado and 83 grammes of methamphetamine.
In Ondo State, the agency said it arrested Happy Endurance, 21, at her hideout in the Shasha area of Akure on October 5, recovering 29 bags of cannabis weighing 290 kilogrammes.
A separate raid on an apartment in Oba-Ile, Akure, on the same day led to the arrest of Tunde Adebayo, 42, with 35 bags of cannabis weighing 351 kilogrammes.
In Kaduna State, operatives arrested Mohammed Musa, 29, during a patrol along the Zaria-Kaduna Expressway, recovering 31 jumbo bags of skunk and 775 blocks of the substance weighing a combined 1,027 kilogrammes.
The agency also reported the arrest of Musbau Balogun Adekunle in Orile, Lagos, on October 6, with 32.51 kilogrammes of skunk and 52.65 kilogrammes of cannabis seeds.
In Taraba State, NDLEA operatives, supported by soldiers, arrested Abdulrasheed Mohamed, 31, and Abubakar Saidu, 37, at Chanchanji village in Wukari Local Government Area on October 9.
Babafemi said the operation led to the recovery of 166,200 tablets of tramadol, each reportedly containing 225mg, with a combined weight of 107 kilogrammes.
Another operation along the Kano-Maiduguri Road on the same day resulted in the arrest of Yahaya Musa, 32, who was allegedly found with 24,990 capsules of tramadol, 50,000 tablets of diazepam and 22,000 tablets of Exol-5.
The agency did not disclose in the statement the intended destinations of the seized consignments or the identities of any additional suspects linked to the shipments.
In Plateau State, NDLEA operatives arrested Christian Chukwudi Uju, 45, at his residence on Rukuba Road, Jos, on October 8, recovering illicit drugs, firearms and ammunition.
The items allegedly recovered included 47 grammes of methamphetamine, two pump-action rifles, a locally made gun, 199 live cartridges, five rounds of 7.62mm ammunition and one round of 9mm ammunition.
The agency did not provide further details on whether the suspect was allegedly linked to any specific violent crime or armed group.
Beyond enforcement operations, the NDLEA said its commands across the country conducted public sensitisation programmes under its War Against Drug Abuse campaign during the week.
The activities included awareness lectures at Progressive Grammar School in Tede, Oyo State; Ehugbo Technical College in Afikpo, Ebonyi State; Baptist High School in Lambata, Niger State; and schools in Kano, Lagos and Ogun states.
Babafemi said the NDLEA Chairman, Buba Marwa, commended officers involved in the operations and urged personnel nationwide to sustain the agency’s balanced approach to drug control.
The latest operations highlight the scale and geographical spread of the agency’s ongoing crackdown on the trafficking and distribution of illicit substances, with arrests and seizures reported at airports, along highways, in residential premises and in suspected drug-distribution locations.
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