NDLEA arrests 101-year-old woman with cannabis, seizes N4.4bn cocaine-laced fufu
NDLEA announced a nationwide crackdown that netted a 101-year-old cannabis dealer in Ogun State, cocaine hidden inside a wrap of fufu in Akwa Ibom, and over N4.4 billion worth of Thai Loud seized at Lagos's Apapa and Lekki ports. On August 15, operatives arrested Esther Ogunmabo, 101, in Ilisan with 90 grammes of skunk; she said she sold it after her shop burned and that her Lagos-based daughter supplied her every four days. The daughter was later arrested. On August 21, a wooden boat intercepted off Akwa Ibom yielded 42.622kg of narcotics, including 20 grammes of cocaine concealed in fufu and hundreds of grammes of skunk. The same day, Apapa Port yielded 1,090.5kg of Thai Loud hidden in a container declared as dry fish and spare parts; Lekki Deep Sea Port added another 400kg of the substance among A4 paper pallets - marking the first interceptions of Thai-sourced drugs via maritime routes. Additional operations across the FCT, Ondo, Kwara, Oyo, Abia and Kano states recovered tramadol, methamphetamine, cannabis and other drugs, while 10,000kg of cannabis was destroyed in Ijare Forest. NDLEA granted the centenarian bail and referred her for counselling due to her age. These seizures illustrate how traffickers are using unconventional concealment and involving vulnerable persons, underscoring the need for public vigilance and timely reporting of suspicious activities to NDLEA.