The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has rearrested an 83-year-old woman, Uloma Uchechi Sunday, for alleged drug trafficking in Abia State, less than a year after she was convicted of a similar offence.
According to a statement by the agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, Uloma was arrested last Wednesday at her residence in Ite-Uzo, Umuaguma, Obingwa Local Government Area of the state, reports The Nation.
The octogenarian was allegedly found with quantities of methamphetamine and Colorado, a synthetic cannabinoid, tied around her waist with a wrapper.
Babafemi said the arrest followed intelligence reports indicating that she operated a drug joint allegedly patronised by criminals terrorising the community.
The NDLEA said Uloma was previously arrested on May 17, 2025, alongside her 32-year-old daughter, Chisom Uchechi, at the same residence.
During the operation, operatives reportedly recovered 50 grammes of methamphetamine, 522 grammes of skunk, 260 grammes of fresh cannabis leaves and 12 grammes of Tramadol.
The agency said both women pleaded guilty and were sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment or an option of a ₦200,000 fine each. They paid the fines and were released.
However, the NDLEA alleged that Uloma subsequently returned to drug trafficking and established a drug joint where she accommodated people it described as dangerous characters.
The latest arrest was part of a series of operations conducted by the agency across several states, resulting in the seizure of large consignments of illicit drugs and other controlled substances.
At the Port Harcourt International Airport in Rivers State, operatives arrested a South African national, Gebashe Sithandiwe Jessie, with 30 parcels of cannabis, popularly known as Thai Loud, weighing 32.74 kilogrammes.
The drugs were concealed in two travelling bags. According to the agency, the suspect travelled from Thailand through Doha aboard a Qatar Airways flight and allegedly confessed to previously trafficking drugs through other African countries before expanding her operations to Port Harcourt.
At the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, NDLEA operatives, working with other relevant agencies, intercepted 354,000 tablets of Tapentadol, each weighing 250mg, in a shipment from Pakistan.
The nine-carton consignment arrived aboard a Royal Air Maroc flight on September 29 and was placed under surveillance. A joint examination conducted on October 6 uncovered the tablets, which weighed 307.20 kilogrammes.
In a separate operation at the Lagos airport, operatives intercepted 70 parcels of Colorado weighing 75.90 kilogrammes in six Ghana-Must-Go bags concealed in consolidated cargo from the United Kingdom.
The shipment, which arrived on September 29, led to the arrest of a 54-year-old clearing agent, John Edrah, on September 30.
An Uber driver, Taofiq Ajibola, 54, was subsequently arrested while attempting to collect one of the bags at a logistics firm in Mafoluku, Oshodi. Adetunji Adebayo and Kazeem Damola Dosunmu, 48, a clothing trader, were later arrested when they arrived to collect the remaining five bags.
Ajibola reportedly identified a UK-based associate, Lukman Sa’idu, as the sender of the drugs, while Dosunmu allegedly said his consignments came from another UK-based individual identified as Yusuf.
In Cross River State, an operation at Iyala Nkun village in Ikom Local Government Area led to the arrest of Adama Inuwa, 46, with 181 bags of cannabis weighing 1,100 kilogrammes and 17.15 kilogrammes of cannabis seeds.
In Edo State, NDLEA 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.
In a separate operation at Asoro, off Sakponba Road, Benin City, operatives arrested Ojugo Mercy, 26, with 989 grammes of Loud, 13 grammes of Colorado and 83 grammes of methamphetamine.
In Ondo State, a 21-year-old suspect, Happy Endurance, was arrested at her hideout in the Shasha area of Akure on October 5 with 29 bags of cannabis weighing 290 kilogrammes.
On the same day, another operation at an apartment in Oba-Ile, Akure, led to the arrest of Tunde Adebayo, 42, with 35 bags of cannabis weighing 351 kilogrammes.
In Taraba State, NDLEA operatives, supported by soldiers, arrested Abdulrasheed Mohamed, 31, and Abubakar Saidu, 37, at Chanchanji village, Wukari Local Government Area, on October 9.
The suspects were allegedly found with 166,200 tablets of Tramadol, 225mg, weighing 107 kilogrammes.
Similarly, a stop-and-search operation on Kano-Maiduguri Road in Kano State on October 9 led to the arrest of Yahaya Musa, 32, with 24,990 capsules of Tramadol, 50,000 tablets of Diazepam and 22,000 tablets of Exol-5.
In Kaduna State, operatives on patrol along the Zaria-Kaduna Expressway arrested Mohammed Musa, 29, with 31 jumbo bags of skunk and 775 blocks of the same substance, weighing a combined 1,027 kilogrammes.
Another suspect, Musbau Balogun Adekunle, was arrested in Orile, Lagos, on October 6 with 32.51 kilogrammes of skunk and 52.65 kilogrammes of cannabis seeds, bringing the total seizure to 85.16 kilogrammes.
In Plateau State, NDLEA operatives recovered drugs, firearms and ammunition during a raid on the residence of Christian Chukwudi Uju, 45, at Rukuba Road, Jos, on October 8.
The items recovered included 47 grammes of methamphetamine, two pump-action rifles, one locally made gun, 199 live cartridges, five rounds of 7.62mm ammunition and one round of 9mm ammunition.
The NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig.-Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), commended officers of the Lagos, Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Port Harcourt International Airport, Taraba, Kano, Kaduna, Edo, Cross River, Ondo and Plateau commands for their operations.
Marwa urged personnel to sustain the agency’s drug-control and enforcement efforts alongside public education.
