The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has arrested an 83-year-old drug dealer alongside a 78-year-old suspect and dozens of other individuals in a sweeping nationwide enforcement operation spanning multiple states, in a series of raids that exposed the increasingly broad demographic spectrum of those drawn into Nigeria’s illicit drug trade.
The 83-year-old suspect, Pa John Ofiel, was arrested during a raid in Abia State after operatives acting on credible intelligence stormed a location at the Samek area and recovered 700 grammes of a potent cannabis strain packaged in retail sachets. Ofiel told investigators he had previously worked as a shoemaker before transitioning into drug distribution.
In a separate operation in Ekiti State, 78-year-old Ogunjobi Samuel was arrested at his residence in Ilupeju-Ekiti, where officers recovered 350 grammes of cannabis, reinforcing concerns about the expanding age profile of individuals involved in drug peddling across the country.
In Oyo State, two women, Rebecca King aged 24 and Olaniyan Opeyemi aged 31, were arrested in connection with the seizure of 1.925 kilogrammes of a synthetic cannabis variant. King was intercepted along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway while Opeyemi was arrested at Iwo Road in Ibadan attempting to receive the consignment.
A separate Ibadan operation yielded the capture of long-wanted drug dealer Taofik Adeyemi, 49, who had evaded arrest for months, alongside an associate. Recovered items included 3.085 kilogrammes of cannabis and a Toyota Camry vehicle.
In Osun State, a 65-year-old driver was arrested transporting seven kilogrammes of cannabis and 15 grammes of methamphetamine along the Ibadan-Ilesha Expressway, leading to the subsequent arrest of the alleged consignment owner in Ilesha.
Large-scale seizures were recorded across the North, with 76,440 tramadol pills recovered from a 27-year-old suspect in Borno State, 290 kilogrammes of compressed cannabis seized along the Abuja-Jos highway in Kaduna State, and nearly 50,000 tramadol capsules recovered from two individuals in Jigawa State.
In Lagos, a raid on Awolowo Market in Mushin yielded 740 kilogrammes of cannabis. In Edo State, a suspect was arrested with multiple illicit substances including synthetic cannabis, tramadol, and methamphetamine.
NDLEA Chairman Buba Marwa commended officers across the affected states for their operational successes and emphasised the importance of balancing aggressive enforcement with sustained public education to reduce both supply and demand of illicit substances.
