Troops Arrest 65-Year-Old Woman for Allegedly Supplying Drugs to Boko Haram in Borno

Troops of the Joint Task Force (North-East), Operation Hadin Kai, have arrested a 65-year-old woman, Hauwa Abulazeez, for allegedly supplying cannabis sativa to Boko Haram terrorist elements in Borno State.

Disclosing this in a statement on Sunday, the spokesman for Operation Hadin Kai, Lieutenant-Colonel Sanni Uba, said the suspect was arrested on January 23, 2026, in Askira Uba Local Government Area of the state.

According to Uba, the suspect is believed to be a key supplier of cannabis sativa to Boko Haram fighters operating in Askira Uba, Rumirgo, Gwahi, Wamdiyo, Uvu, and Gaya communities, as well as a major conduit for distributing the illicit substance across several locations within the North-East theatre of operations.

“Troops of the Joint Task Force (North-East), Operation Hadin Kai, under Operation Desert Sanity V, have recorded another significant success in efforts to degrade terrorist logistics and criminal support networks in the North-East,” the statement said.

Uba explained that the arrest followed credible intelligence, which led troops to intercept the suspect during a targeted operation in Askira Uba.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the suspect allegedly sourced the cannabis sativa from Sarti Baruwa Local Government Area of Taraba State and transported it through established supply routes for onward distribution to terrorist elements.

During the operation, troops recovered 14 compressed blocks of cannabis sativa, with an estimated total weight of about 30 kilograms.

Uba added that the suspect is currently in custody undergoing preliminary investigation, while follow-up operations are ongoing to identify and dismantle the wider drug trafficking and distribution network.