Odita Sunday 
NDLEA Arrests 101-Year-Old Woman Over Cannabis, Seizes N4.4bn Thai Loud at Lagos Ports
By Odita Sunday
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 101-year-old woman, Esther Ogunmabo, for allegedly dealing in cannabis in Ogun State, while intercepting cocaine concealed in edible cassava flour popularly known as fufu and seizing large consignments of Loud worth more than N4.4 billion at the Apapa and Lekki ports in Lagos.
The arrests and seizures formed part of a series of operations conducted by NDLEA operatives across the country’s land and maritime borders, which also led to the recovery of methamphetamine, skunk, tramadol, codeine and other illicit substances.
Ogunmabo was arrested on Saturday, August 15, 2026, at Ilisan, Ogun State, with 90 grammes of skunk, a strain of cannabis, packaged in retail sachets.
The centenarian reportedly told NDLEA operatives that she turned to the illicit drug trade after her provisions shop was razed by fire.
She also said one of her daughters, who resides in Lagos, arranged the supply of the substance to her every four days, which she subsequently sold in small quantities to local residents.
The Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), directed that the 101-year-old suspect be granted bail and placed on counselling because of her advanced age.
Her daughter was, however, arrested in connection with the case.
In Akwa Ibom State, NDLEA operatives acting on credible intelligence intercepted a wooden boat on Friday, August 21, while it was conveying illicit drugs to fishing settlements in the Republic of Cameroon.
Three suspects arrested aboard the boat were Etima Effiong Eekpo, 29; Otobong Eyoh Etukudoh, 33; and Kingsley Effiong John, 27.
The agency said Eekpo was found with 1.120kg of skunk, while Etukudoh had 42.060kg of skunk.
John was allegedly found with 20 grammes of cocaine cleverly concealed inside a large wrap of edible cassava fufu, alongside 435 grammes of skunk.
The three suspects were allegedly heading to Ine Isu, Ine Mbah and Ine Ikot Itie Udung fishing ports in Cameroon.
A total of 42.622kg of narcotics was recovered from the trio.
In the maritime sector, the agency recorded what it described as its first-ever seizure of illicit drugs shipped from Thailand through the maritime corridor, following the interception of two containers of cannabis indica, also known as Loud, at the Apapa and Lekki ports in Lagos.
The combined street value of the consignments was put at more than N4.4 billion.
According to the NDLEA, both containers were loaded at the Port of Laem Chabang, Thailand, indicating the emergence of a new trafficking route allegedly being exploited by drug syndicates to smuggle synthetic cannabis into Nigeria.
At the Apapa Port, a container declared to contain dry fish, rice, vehicle spare parts, turmeric soap and inverter batteries was subjected to a joint examination by NDLEA, Customs and other agencies on Friday, August 21.
The examination uncovered 1,090.5kg of Thai Loud packed in 54 cartons containing 2,181 sachets of 500 grammes each.
At the Lekki Deep Sea Port, another container that had been placed on the agency’s watchlist and monitored by its Marine Special Operations Unit was jointly examined on Wednesday, August 19.
Of the seven pallets found inside the container and wrapped in black nylon, four were confirmed to contain Thai Loud.
The consignment comprised 96 cartons containing 400 parcels weighing a total of 400kg.
The remaining three pallets contained 798 rims of A4 paper, which had allegedly been used as cover for the drug consignment.
In the Federal Capital Territory, NDLEA operatives on Saturday, August 22, intercepted three waybill packages containing 24,410 pills of tramadol capsules inside a Hummer bus travelling from Enugu to Zuba.
A follow-up operation in Niger State led to the arrest of the alleged owner of the consignment, 28-year-old Sunday Eze, in Kontagora.
He was subsequently transferred to Abuja.
In Ondo State, NDLEA operatives on Wednesday, August 19, raided a cannabis farm at Ijare forest, Ifedore Local Government Area, following the earlier arrest of three suspected cannabis planters at the same location on August 16.
The operation led to the destruction of 10,000kg of skunk cultivated across four hectares of the forest.
In a separate operation in the state on the same day, operatives at Ita-Ogbolu, Akure North LGA, recovered 210kg of skunk and a Toyota Camry with registration number AGL 223 JH, allegedly belonging to Sylvester Dibiagu Anthony, who is currently at large.
In Kwara State, NDLEA operatives on patrol along the Ogbomosho-Ilorin Expressway, Ilorin, on Friday, August 21, intercepted a Toyota Starlet without a registration number.
A search of the vehicle led to the recovery of 1.325kg of methamphetamine wrapped in black nylon bags, alongside quantities of cannabis sativa.
A 22-year-old suspect, Muhammadu Usman, was arrested in connection with the seizure.
In Oyo State, a 65-year-old woman, Adebayo Kaosarat, was arrested at the Akobo-Ojuirin area of Ibadan on Friday, August 21, with a cocktail of substances weighing 4.68kg.
The substances comprised 1.795kg of Scottish Loud, 1.66kg of tramadol, 600 grammes of codeine syrup, 125 grammes of diazepam and 50 grammes of flunitrazepam.
In Kano State, a raid at Hadeija Road on Monday, August 17, led to the arrest of Chibuzor Madueke, 31, with 98 blocks of skunk weighing 73.3kg recovered from him.
Similarly, NDLEA operatives at Seme, in the Badagry area of Lagos, arrested three family members Nasiru Tijjani, 52; Moshood Tijjani, 27; and Salami Tijjani, 27 at Ashipa area near the Seme border with 48kg of skunk.
In Abia State, NDLEA officers on Thursday, August 20, raided the residence of 36-year-old Ikechukwu Anthony Iwuno at Umuobia Olokoro area of Umuahia South LGA.
The operation resulted in the recovery of 14.4kg of Loud, 2.3kg of Colorado, 386 grammes of tramadol and 134 grammes of rohypnol.
Beyond arrests and seizures, NDLEA Commands and formations across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation activities in schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities during the past week.
The agency said the activities included WADA enlightenment lectures for students and staff of Umar Bn Khattab College for Islamic Studies, Ungogo LGA, Kano; Markaz Al-Furqan Centre of Islamic and Arabic Teaching, Kishi, Oyo State; School of Nursing and Midwifery, Birnin Kebbi, Kebbi State; Mu’assasah Tahfizui Qur’an Islamiya School, Ibi, Taraba State; and members of the Scout Association of Nigeria at the first National Youth Camp held in Benin City, Edo State.
The Idiroko Special Area Command of NDLEA also paid a WADA advocacy visit to the Chairman of Ipokia LGA, Ogun State, Hon. Johnson Avoseh.
Commending the officers and men of the Ogun, Apapa, Lekki, Seme, Akwa Ibom, Ondo, Oyo, Kwara, Kano, Abia and FCT Commands for the successful operations, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Marwa (rtd), urged them and their colleagues across the country to sustain the agency’s current balanced approach to drug control.
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