NDLEA re-arrests 80-year-old ex-convict, seizes drugs hidden in Mannequins

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested an 80-year-old ex-convict, Jeremiah Isaiah Nkanta, and uncovered illicit drugs concealed inside full body mannequins, as the agency intensified nationwide operations that led to the recovery of large quantities of narcotics and the arrest of multiple suspects across several states.

Barely three years after his arrest, prosecution and conviction for drug trafficking, Nkanta was again apprehended for returning to the illicit trade.

The octogenarian was first arrested on December 14, 2022, prosecuted and sentenced to two years’ imprisonment by a Federal High Court in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.

However, acting on credible intelligence, NDLEA operatives on Saturday, January 10, tracked Nkanta to his residence in Mmanta-Abak village, Abak Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State, where he was arrested with 5.7 kilograms of skunk, a potent strain of cannabis, found in his house.

In another major interdiction in Akwa Ibom State, NDLEA officers on patrol along the Oron–Ibaka Road in Oron Local Government Area on Friday, January 9, intercepted a 37-year-old businessman, Ani Onyebuchi Romans.

Romans was travelling with full body mannequins allegedly meant for his clothing business in Cameroun. A search revealed that the mannequins were stuffed with tramadol pills weighing 5.3 kilograms.

The suspect, who claimed to reside in Cameroun, was reportedly returning after the Christmas and New Year holidays when he was arrested. Investigations revealed that he purchased the opioids in Onitsha, Anambra State, and concealed them inside two mannequins for onward trafficking to Cameroun.

In Oyo State, coordinated raids across different locations led to the arrest of several notorious drug dealers and the seizure of dangerous substances. Among them was 45-year-old Remi Bamidele, also known as “Aluko the Mafia,” who was arrested at Sasa, Ibadan, on Thursday, January 8. A total of 10.696 kilograms of Colorado, Scottish Loud, Ghana Loud, Canadian Loud and skunk were recovered from him. Two vehicles—a Toyota Venza and a Toyota Yaris—were also seized.

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Also in Ibadan, NDLEA officers arrested Adeola Toheeb, 27, at the Adegbayi area on Friday, January 9, with various quantities of Colorado, Ghana Loud and skunk. Another suspect, Habeeb Ali, 29, was arrested at Ring Road with 1.264 kilograms of Colorado, Scottish Loud and skunk, alongside a cash exhibit of ₦1,307,100 recovered at the point of arrest on Saturday, January 10.

In Edo State, a dispatch rider, Osagbovo Edigin, 30, alongside Ebimi Labo, 28, and Akhimie Success, 25, was arrested on Friday, January 9, at Ihama/Airport Road, GRA Benin City. Their arrest followed the seizure of 118 grams of Canadian Loud and a wrap of Colorado.

Further arrests in Edo State saw Jimoh Agbonmhegbe, 49, apprehended at Irrua with 17.552 kilograms of Colorado, Loud and skunk, while Evelyn Okoyomon, 38, was arrested at Ubiaja with 930 grams of skunk on Wednesday, January 7.

In Niger State, NDLEA operatives recovered 4,000 pills of tramadol (225mg) from a suspect, Nazifi Umar, 22, at Dakwa town in Tafa Local Government Area. In Taraba State, Yusuf Usman, 41, was arrested at Lankaviri, Yorro Local Government Area, with 100 blocks of skunk weighing 47 kilograms.

Commending the officers and men of the Akwa Ibom, Adamawa, Taraba, Edo, Oyo and Niger commands, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd), praised their operational successes.

He said the agency’s balanced approach to drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts remains commendable and crucial in the ongoing fight against substance abuse and trafficking in the country.