101-Year-old great grandma busted for drug trade as NDLEA seizes N4.4bn Thai Loud

By Kazeem Ugbodaga

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 101-year-old great grandmother for allegedly dealing in cannabis in Ogun State.

This is coming as operatives also intercepted cocaine concealed inside edible cassava flour popularly known as fufu and seized illicit drugs worth billions of naira across the country.

The agency also seized 1,490.5kg of cannabis indica, popularly known as Loud, valued at more than N4.4 billion at the Apapa and Lekki ports in Lagos, in what it described as its first seizure of illicit drugs shipped from Thailand through the maritime corridor.

The NDLEA Director, Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.

Babafemi said operatives arrested the centenarian, identified as Esther Ogunmabo, at Ilisan, Ogun State, on Saturday, August 15, 2026, after she was found with 90 grammes of skunk, a strain of cannabis, packaged in retail sachets.

He said the woman admitted selling the substance to local residents, explaining that she ventured into the illicit trade after her provisions shop was destroyed by fire.

According to Babafemi, Ogunmabo also revealed that one of her daughters, who lives in Lagos, supplied the cannabis to her every four days, which she subsequently sold in small quantities.

He stated that following the development, the NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd.), directed that the 101-year-old suspect be granted bail and subjected to counselling because of her advanced age.

Babafemi added that the woman’s daughter had, however, been arrested in connection with the case.

In another major interception, he said NDLEA operatives in Akwa Ibom State, acting on credible intelligence on Friday, August 21, intercepted a wooden boat on the high seas carrying illicit drugs to fishing settlements in Cameroon.

He revealed that three suspects were arrested aboard the boat, which was heading towards Ine Isu, Ine Mbah and Ine Ikot Itie Udung fishing ports in the neighbouring country.

The suspects, Babafemi said, were Etima Effiong Eekpo, 29, who had 1.120kg of skunk; Otobong Eyoh Etukudoh, 33, who was found with 42.060kg of skunk; and Kingsley Effiong John, 27, who was caught with 20 grammes of cocaine concealed inside a large wrap of edible cassava fufu.

He added that John was also found with 435 grammes of skunk, bringing the total quantity of narcotics recovered from the three suspects to 42.622kg.

Babafemi said the agency also recorded a major breakthrough at the nation’s seaports with the interception of two containers containing Thai Loud at the Apapa and Lekki ports.

He stated that the combined street value of the cannabis indica seized from the two containers was estimated at more than N4.4 billion.

According to him, both containers were loaded at the Port of Laem Chabang in Thailand, indicating the emergence of a new maritime route being exploited by international drug trafficking syndicates.

At the Apapa Port, Babafemi revealed that a container declared to contain dry fish, rice, vehicle spare parts, turmeric soap and inverter batteries was subjected to a joint examination by NDLEA, the Nigeria Customs Service and other stakeholders on Friday, August 21.

He said the inspection 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 placed on the NDLEA watchlist was intercepted after being monitored by the agency’s Marine Special Operations Unit.

Babafemi said the container was jointly examined on Wednesday, August 19, leading to the discovery of seven pallets wrapped in black nylon.

He stated that four of the pallets contained Thai Loud, with 96 cartons made up of 400 parcels weighing 400kg in total, while the remaining three pallets contained 798 rims of A4 paper used to conceal the illicit consignment.

The NDLEA spokesman further disclosed that operatives in the Federal Capital Territory intercepted three waybill packages containing 24,410 pills of tramadol capsules inside a Hummer bus travelling from Enugu to Zuba on Saturday, August 22.

He said a follow-up operation in Niger State led to the arrest of the owner of the consignment, 28-year-old Sunday Eze, in Kontagora, after which he was transferred to Abuja.

In Ondo State, Babafemi said NDLEA operatives raided a cannabis farm in Ijare forest, Ifedore Local Government Area, on Wednesday, August 19, following the earlier arrest of three suspected cannabis cultivators at the same location.

He revealed that the operation led to the destruction of 10,000kg of skunk cultivated across four hectares of forest.

He added that in a separate operation at Ita-Ogbolu, Akure North Local Government Area, the same day, operatives recovered 210kg of skunk and a Toyota Camry with registration number AGL 223 JH.

The vehicle, he said, belonged to Sylvester Dibiagu Anthony, who remains at large.

In Kwara State, Babafemi said operatives on patrol along the Ogbomosho-Ilorin Expressway intercepted a Toyota Starlet without a registration number on Friday, August 21.

He stated that a search of the vehicle uncovered 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, he added.

Babafemi also disclosed the arrest of a 65-year-old woman, Adebayo Kaosarat, in the Akobo-Ojuirin area of Ibadan, Oyo State, on Friday, August 21.

He said the woman was found with a cocktail of illicit substances comprising 1.795kg of Scottish Loud, 1.66kg of tramadol, 600 grammes of codeine syrup, 125 grammes of diazepam and 50 grammes of flunitrazepam, with a combined weight of 4.68kg.

In Kano State, the NDLEA spokesman said a raid at Hadeija Road on Monday, August 17, resulted in the arrest of 31-year-old Chibuzor Madueke, from whom 98 blocks of skunk weighing 73.3kg were recovered.

He said operatives also arrested three members of the same family at Ashipa, near the Seme border in Lagos State.

The suspects, identified as Nasiru Tijjani, 52, and his two relatives, Moshood Tijjani and Salami Tijjani, both 27, were arrested with 48kg of skunk, Babafemi stated.

In Abia State, he revealed that NDLEA officers raided the residence of 36-year-old Ikechukwu Anthony Iwuno at Umuobia Olokoro, Umuahia South Local Government Area, on Thursday, August 20.

The operation, he said, yielded 14.4kg of Loud, 2.3kg of Colorado, 386 grammes of tramadol and 134 grammes of Rohypnol.

Babafemi said Marwa commended officers and men of the Ogun, Apapa, Lekki, Seme, Akwa Ibom, Ondo, Oyo, Kwara, Kano, Abia and FCT Commands for their successful operations.

He stated that the NDLEA chairman urged officers across the country to sustain the agency’s current balanced approach to drug control, combining enforcement operations with prevention, sensitisation, counselling and other measures aimed at tackling the illicit drug problem.