Nigeria’s anti-narcotics agency on Sunday said it had re-arrested an 83-year-old woman for possessing illegal drugs, a year after she was convicted of a similar crime.
Nigeria’s National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) said it arrested the octogenarian with methamphetamine and synthetic cannabis strapped around her waist on October 7.
“At 83, most grandmothers are asking for rest. Not Mrs Uloma Uchechi Sunday, who was arrested again… barely a year after she was nabbed, prosecuted and convicted for the same offence,” NDLEA spokesman Femi Babafemi said in a statement.
Uchechi Sunday was arrested at a village in southeastern Abia state, with two grammes of cannabis and seven grammes of meth following a tip-off.
Nigeria has been considered a trafficking and production hub for drugs bound for other countries, but researchers and healthcare workers say the contraband spills into local markets.
A 2024 UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) report showed that heroin and meth from Asia also pass through West Africa, en route from east and southern Africa towards Europe.
Uchechi Sunday was first arrested and convicted last year alongside her 32-year-old daughter for possessing various amounts of meth, tramadol, fresh cannabis leaves and synthetic cannabis.
She pleaded guilty and was sentenced to either a year in jail or the option of a N200,000 ($150) fine. She paid the fine and was released.
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“Undeterred, the notorious old woman promptly returned to the criminal trade and escalated the scale by setting up a drug joint where she harbours dangerous characters,” said Babafemi.
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