Nigeria’s anti narcotics agency has arrested a 101 year old woman accused of selling cannabis and, in a separate operation, intercepted cocaine concealed inside fufu, a popular cassava based food, as authorities intensify efforts against increasingly unconventional methods of drug trafficking.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, or NDLEA, identified the woman as Esther Ogunmabo, a great grandmother from Ilisan in southwestern Ogun State. Operatives arrested her Aug. 15 after allegedly finding 90 grams of skunk, a potent form of cannabis, packaged in small quantities for retail sale. The agency said Ogunmabo told investigators she sold cannabis to people in her community.
Behind the unusual arrest was a story of economic hardship. According to the NDLEA, Ogunmabo said she began selling cannabis after a fire destroyed the provisions shop from which she earned a living. She told investigators that one of her daughters, who lives in Lagos, arranged for cannabis to be supplied to her about every four days. The daughter was subsequently arrested, the agency said.
NDLEA Chairman Mohamed Buba Marwa directed officials to release Ogunmabo on bail and place her in counseling because of her advanced age. The decision introduced an element of discretion into an otherwise aggressive nationwide enforcement campaign, while the investigation involving her daughter continues.
In a separate operation hundreds of kilometers away, NDLEA officers in Akwa Ibom State intercepted a wooden boat Aug. 21 that authorities said was transporting drugs across the maritime border to fishing settlements in neighboring Cameroon. Three men, Etima Effiong Eekpo, 29, Otobong Eyoh Etukudoh, 33, and Kingsley Effiong John, 27, were arrested aboard the vessel.
The agency said John was carrying 20 grams of cocaine concealed inside a large wrap of fufu, along with 435 grams of cannabis. Etukudoh allegedly had 42.06 kilograms of cannabis, while Eekpo was found with 1.12 kilograms. Altogether, authorities said they recovered 42.622 kilograms of narcotics from the three suspects. The concealment of cocaine inside fufu drew particular attention because the food is an everyday staple consumed by millions of people across West and Central Africa.
The operations were part of a larger series of seizures announced by the NDLEA. At Lagos ports, authorities intercepted two containers carrying nearly 1.5 metric tons of cannabis indica, commonly known as Loud, with an estimated street value exceeding 4.4 billion naira. The NDLEA said the shipments originated at Thailand’s Laem Chabang port and represented the agency’s first interception of illicit drugs shipped from Thailand through Nigeria’s maritime corridor.
At Apapa, authorities said 1,090.5 kilograms of the drug were discovered in a container declared as carrying goods including dry fish, rice, vehicle parts and batteries. At Lekki Deep Sea Port, another 400 kilograms were recovered from pallets inside a monitored container, while hundreds of rims of A4 paper were allegedly used to conceal the shipment. The discoveries highlight the changing methods and international routes traffickers use to move narcotics into and through Nigeria.
Nigeria’s modern anti drug campaign stretches back decades. The NDLEA was established in 1989 as the country confronted its growing role as a transit point in international narcotics trafficking. Enforcement has since expanded beyond airports to seaports, highways, border communities and domestic distribution networks. Recent operations involving cannabis, cocaine, methamphetamine, tramadol and other controlled substances show that authorities are confronting both international trafficking networks and small scale domestic sales.
The contrasting cases of a 101 year old woman accused of selling small quantities of cannabis after losing her livelihood and suspected traffickers allegedly concealing cocaine inside a staple food illustrate the varied nature of Nigeria’s illicit drug trade. While Ogunmabo’s age and circumstances have drawn widespread attention, the larger seizures underscore the challenge facing authorities as traffickers adapt their routes and concealment methods. Marwa has urged NDLEA personnel to continue combining enforcement with drug abuse prevention, counseling and public education.
