101-Year-Old Great-Grandmother Arrested for Selling Cannabis in Ogun

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, have arrested a 101-year-old great-grandmother, Esther Ogunmabo, for allegedly dealing in illicit drugs in Ilisan, Ogun State.

Ogunmabo was arrested on Saturday, August 15, with 90 grammes of skunk, a strain of cannabis, packaged in retail sachets. She reportedly told investigators that she sold the substance to residents in the area.

According to the NDLEA, the centenarian said she turned to illicit drug dealing after her provisions shop was destroyed by fire.

She reportedly disclosed that one of her daughters, who lives in Lagos, supplied the cannabis to her every four days, after which she sold it in small quantities to customers.

The NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, said the agency’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (retd.), directed that Ogunmabo be granted bail and placed on counselling because of her advanced age.

Her daughter was also arrested in connection with the alleged drug trade.

The arrest was part of a series of drug enforcement operations conducted by the NDLEA across the country.

In Akwa Ibom, operatives intercepted a wooden boat on the high seas allegedly transporting illicit drugs to fishing settlements in Cameroon. Three suspects were arrested, with a combined 42.622kg of narcotics recovered, including skunk and cocaine.

The agency also recorded what it described as its first seizure of illicit drugs shipped from Thailand through Nigeria’s maritime corridor.

Two containers intercepted at the Apapa and Lekki ports contained a combined 1,490.5kg of cannabis indica, popularly known as Loud, with an estimated street value of more than N4.4 billion.

At the Apapa Port, 1,090.5kg of Thai Loud was discovered concealed in a container declared to contain items including dry fish, rice, vehicle spare parts, turmeric soap and inverter batteries.

Another 400kg of the substance was recovered from a container at the Lekki Deep Sea Port, where the drugs were allegedly concealed among other cargo.

In the Federal Capital Territory, NDLEA operatives intercepted three waybill packages containing 24,410 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.

Meanwhile, the agency destroyed about 10,000kg of cannabis cultivated across four hectares of farmland in Ijare forest, Ifedore Local Government Area of Ondo State.

Other operations across Kano, Lagos, Abia and other states also resulted in arrests and the recovery of significant quantities of cannabis, synthetic drugs, tramadol and other controlled substances.

Marwa commended the officers involved in the operations and urged NDLEA personnel across the country to sustain what he described as a balanced approach to drug control.