The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has re-arrested an 83-year-old grandmother, Uloma Uchechi Sunday, in Abia State over alleged drug trafficking, less than a year after she was convicted of a similar offence.
The woman was arrested on Wednesday, October 7, 2026, at her residence in Ite-Uzo, Umuaguma, Obingwa Local Government Area, with quantities of methamphetamine and Colorado, a synthetic cannabinoid, allegedly concealed around her waist with a wrapper.
The NDLEA disclosed the arrest in a statement issued on Sunday, October 11, by its Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi.
According to the agency, her arrest followed intelligence reports alleging that she operated a drug joint where criminal elements accused of terrorising the community gathered.
The NDLEA said Sunday was first arrested on May 17, 2025, alongside her 32-year-old daughter, Chisom Uchechi, at the same residence.
During that operation, operatives recovered 50 grammes of methamphetamine, 522 grammes of skunk, 260 grammes of fresh cannabis leaves and 12 grammes of tramadol.
Babafemi said both women pleaded guilty and were sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment or an option of a ₦200,000 fine each. They paid the fines and were released by the court.
The agency alleged that Sunday returned to drug trafficking after her release and subsequently established a drug joint at her residence.
The latest arrest formed part of wider NDLEA operations that resulted in several drug seizures and arrests across the country.
At the Port Harcourt International Airport in Rivers State, operatives arrested a South African national, Gebashe Sithandiwe Jessie, with 32.74 kilogrammes of Thai Loud, a strain of cannabis, concealed in two travelling bags.
The agency said the suspect travelled from Thailand through Doha aboard a Qatar Airways flight before she was apprehended.
At the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos, NDLEA operatives also intercepted 354,000 tablets of Tapentadol 250mg, weighing 307.20 kilogrammes, in nine cartons shipped from Pakistan. The consignment arrived on September 29, 2026, aboard a Royal Air Maroc flight and was examined on October 6.
In another operation at the Lagos airport, officers seized 75.90 kilogrammes of Colorado concealed in six Ghana-Must-Go bags inside a consolidated cargo shipment from the United Kingdom.
The agency said several suspects, including a clearing agent and an Uber driver, were arrested in connection with the shipment as investigations continued.
