An 80-year-old ex-convict, Jeremiah Isaiah Nkanta, has been rearrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for returning to illicit drug trafficking barely three years after completing a jail term for a similar offence.
Nkanta, a resident of Mmanta–Abak village in Abak Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State, was apprehended on Saturday, January 10, following credible intelligence that he had resumed drug dealing. A search of his residence led to the recovery of 5.7 kilograms of skunk, a strain of cannabis.
The octogenarian was first arrested by the NDLEA on December 14, 2022, prosecuted, and sentenced to two years’ imprisonment by a Federal High Court in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.
In a related operation in the state, NDLEA operatives intercepted a 37-year-old businessman, Ani Onyebuchi Romans, along the Oron–Ibaka Road in Oron Local Government Area on Friday, January 9. Romans was travelling with two full-body mannequins allegedly meant for his clothing business in Cameroon. A search revealed the mannequins were stuffed with tramadol pills weighing 5.3 kilograms. The suspect reportedly purchased the drugs in Onitsha, Anambra State, and was attempting to traffic them to Cameroon.
Across Oyo State, coordinated raids led to the arrest of several suspected drug dealers and the seizure of assorted illicit substances. Among those arrested was 45-year-old Remi Bamidele, popularly known as “Aluko the Mafia,” who was nabbed at Sasa, Ibadan, with 10.696 kilograms of various strains of cannabis, including Colorado, Scottish Loud, Ghana Loud, Canadian Loud, and skunk. Two vehicles were also recovered from him.
Other arrests in Ibadan included Adeola Toheeb, 27, and Habeeb Ali, 29, who was found with 1.264 kilograms of illicit drugs and ₦1,307,100 in cash suspected to be proceeds of drug trafficking.
In Edo State, a dispatch rider, Osagbovo Edigin, 30, alongside two others—Ebimi Labo, 28, and Akhimie Success, 25—was arrested in Benin City in connection with the seizure of Canadian Loud and Colorado. Additional arrests were recorded in Irrua and Ubiaja with significant quantities of cannabis recovered.
Further operations in Niger, Taraba, and Adamawa states led to the seizure of thousands of tramadol pills and large quantities of cannabis, including 47 kilograms of skunk in Taraba and 30,950 tramadol capsules recovered in Adamawa State.
Meanwhile, NDLEA commands nationwide continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation campaigns, targeting schools, religious centres, workplaces, and communities to discourage drug abuse and trafficking.
Commending the officers involved in the operations, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), praised the sustained efforts of the agency in balancing drug supply reduction with demand reduction strategies across the country.