NDLEA rearrests 83-year-old woman in Abia after earlier drug conviction

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has rearrested 83-year-old Uloma Uchechi Sunday in Abia State on suspicion of drug trafficking, following an earlier conviction for drug offences.

The agency said operatives arrested her on October 7 at her residence in Ite-Uzo, Umuaguma, in Obingwa Local Government Area. It alleged that methamphetamine and Colorado were concealed around her waist in a wrapper.

NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi announced the arrest in a statement on Sunday. He said it followed intelligence about an alleged drug joint at the residence.

Babafemi said Sunday and her 32-year-old daughter, Chisom Uchechi, had previously been arrested at the same address on May 17, 2025. The agency said that operation yielded 50 grammes of methamphetamine, 522 grammes of skunk, 260 grammes of fresh cannabis leaves and 12 grammes of tramadol.

Both women pleaded guilty and received sentences of 12 months in prison or a fine of N200,000 each. They paid the fines and were released, according to the agency.

Premium Times reported that the agency did not say whether Sunday had been charged following her latest arrest.

The Sunday statement also detailed separate airport seizures. At Port Harcourt International Airport, the NDLEA said it arrested South African national Gebashe Sithandiwe Jessie with 30 parcels of cannabis known as Thai Loud, weighing 32.74 kilogrammes, concealed in two travelling bags.

Babafemi said she arrived from Thailand through Doha aboard Qatar Airways flight QR1431.

At the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos, officers intercepted 354,000 tapentadol tablets in nine cartons shipped from Pakistan, according to the NDLEA. The shipment, weighing 307.20 kilogrammes, arrived on September 29 and was examined on October 6.

The agency also reported recovering firearms during an October 8 raid at a residence on Rukuba Road in Jos. Its stated haul included two pump-action rifles, a locally made gun and ammunition, alongside 47 grammes of methamphetamine.

NDLEA chairman Buba Marwa commended the officers involved in the operations and urged them to sustain their work against drug trafficking and abuse.

Sources: Channels Television, Vanguard, Premium Times