Crime

West Africa’s drug trafficking surge fuels local addiction

Published

11 months ago

October 3, 2025

Drug trafficking through West Africa is deepening addiction and straining public resources in some of the world’s poorest countries, used to transit contraband towards Europe.

The United Nations sounded the alarm last year that smuggling through the Sahel — a semi-arid region below the Sahara where poverty and armed groups are rife — was on the rise, noting an increase in large-scale cocaine seizures in recent years.

But government officials, doctors and researchers told AFP such trafficking — in addition to providing money for criminal groups — leads to contraband spilling over into the local market in low-income countries, where treatment options are sparse.

“Once it finds its way into the system, even if the rationale behind it is to export it to other countries, some will find itself within the country,” said Alexander Twum Barimah, deputy director general of the Narcotics Control Commission in Ghana.

West Africa has long been “a natural stopover” for drugs — mostly cocaine from Latin America — making their way to North Africa and Europe, mostly through maritime routes but increasingly overland, a 2024 report from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) noted.

Heroin and meth from Asia also pass through the region, en route from east and southern Africa towards Europe, according to the UN.

While drug profits are higher in Europe, some contraband ends up diverted along the way, notably when low-level traffickers are paid in-kind, experts say.

According to the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime (GI-TOC), as much as 30 per cent of Europe’s cocaine could be transiting through West Africa, as routes from South America come under pressure from law enforcement and European demand rises.

The problem of drug abuse is not new in West Africa, and some drugs, including cannabis and meth, are produced locally.

But countries in the region can hardly handle the influx from trafficking.

According to 2019 UN data, 14.4 per cent of Nigerians aged between 15 and 64 years had used drugs in the past year — more than double the global average of 5.6 per cent.

That figure is expected to keep rising, Akanidomo Ibanga, Nigeria country project officer for the UNODC, told AFP, due to trafficking, the proliferation of conflict and a booming youth population facing a lack of economic opportunities.

– Rehab centres lacking –

Six states in Nigeria don’t have a single drug treatment centre, while another nine only have one, according to a 2022 count.

The entire country of more than 200 million people has only 2,500 beds, Ibanga said — meaning some 10,000 people can be treated in a given year, out of the estimated three million Nigerians who need help.

On a quiet street on the outskirts of Abuja, the offices of Vanguard Against Drug Abuse lie behind an unmarked gate, indistinguishable from the houses around it, in an effort to provide privacy for those staying there.

Inside are chess boards, a ping pong table and meeting spaces for group therapy. Its 600,000 naira ($400) per month rate for in-patient therapy is described by founder Abraham Hope Omeiza as heavily discounted — but is still nearly nine times the minimum wage.

The 500 or so people Vanguard treats in both in-patient and out-patient therapy each year “is not enough”, Omeiza told AFP.

– Shifting local markets –

Moving drugs through West Africa also entrenches corruption in the region, researchers warn.

In Sierra Leone, investigative journalists have linked Dutch national Jos Leijdekkers, who is on Europol’s most-wanted list for cocaine trafficking, to the local political elite, including the president’s family.

The country, which only has a single psychiatric hospital, is currently battling an epidemic of people using kush — a synthetic cannabinoid used locally — as well as crack, derived from cocaine.

Ibrahim Kargbo, a senior director at the National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency, told AFP his agency is worried Sierra Leone “is rapidly becoming a trafficking corridor”.

In Ghana, a 2021 survey found cocaine was the most widely abused drug in the greater Accra region, followed by heroin and crack.

The region is also seeing an influx of tramadol, an opioid imported for the domestic market, but which has been aided in part by the success of heroin dealers.

In recent months, Ghanaian authorities have put out education campaigns against “red”, a high-strength variant of tramadol.

“If you are in that space where you cannot afford heroin, you rely on red,” said Maria-Goretti Ane Loglo, who has researched drug use in Ghana.

Nana Twum, a farmer in Ghana’s Western Region, told AFP earlier this year that “when I use them, I feel stronger at work.”

“But I have realised it is affecting me because I become weak when the drug wears off,” he said, adding that he was hoping to wean himself off.

A few weeks later, he was receiving treatment at the Nkwanta Regional Hospital.

“The process has not been easy, but I know it is the best choice,” he said.

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Crime

Police arrest 10 suspected human parts sellers in Oyo

Published

2 days ago

August 15, 2026

Oluwagbenga Olaoye

The Oyo State Police Command has arrested 10 suspected human parts sellers.

The suspects were arrested in the Iseyin and Saki areas of the state.

Public Relations Officer of the command, Olayinka Ayanlade, disclosed this in a statement on Saturday.

Exhibits recovered from the suspects include one suspected human heart, human flesh, pieces of human skull and assorted charms.

The statement said the exhibits have been secured for forensic examination and further investigation.

The suspects were identified as Adam Ibrahim, Nasiru Kabiru, Tijani Wasiu, Abiola Nasiru, Amusa Gbadamosi, Raheem Taofeek, Jimoh Muritala, Suleiman Busari, Ganiyu Nurudeen and Usman Abdullahi.

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Crime

PHOTOS: Kebbi man arrested over alleged ritual desecration of Qur’an after burying it in pit with s€men to make woman more submissive to her husband

Published

2 days ago

August 15, 2026

Oluwagbenga Olaoye

The Kebbi State Police Command has arrested a 29-year-old man, Abubakar Musa, over alleged ritual desecration of the Holy Qur’an in Zuru Local Government Area of the state.

The spokesperson for the command, SP Bashir Usman, who disclosed this in a statement on 14th August 2026, said the suspect was arrested in connection with alleged criminal conspiracy, abuse of religious books, use of spells and hypnosis, and inciting disturbance.

According to the PPRO, on August 9, 2026, Musa and two other suspects, Rabi’u Tela and Hamza Zango, allegedly dug a pit and buried a copy of the Holy Qur’an, together with semen, white and red kolanuts, underwear, d3ad animals, and other fetish items.

The police spokesperson said the act was allegedly intended to make Rabi’u Tela’s wife Zarau Hassan more submissive to him.

“The Kebbi State Police Command has arrested Abubakar Musa, male, 29, of Rafin Mose Village, Zuru LGA, in connection with a case of criminal conspiracy, abuse of religious books, use of spells and hypnosis, and inciting disturbance,” the statement read.

“The incident occurred on 9th August 2026, at about 1900hrs, at Zango Area, Zuru. Preliminary investigation revealed that the suspect allegedly conspired with two others; Rabi’u Tela, husband of Zarau Hassan, and Hamza Zango, both now at large, to dig a pit inside Zarau Hassan’s room and bury therein a copy of the Holy Qur’an, together with semen, white and red kolanuts, underwear, dead animals, and other fetish items.

“The act was allegedly intended to make Zarau Hassan more submissive to her husband, Rabi’u Tela, and was carried out in circumstances capable of provoking a breach of the peace among the Muslim faithful in the community.

“Efforts are ongoing to apprehend the two fleeing suspects, while Abubakar Musa remains in police custody and will be charged to court upon conclusion of investigation.

“The Commissioner of Police, CP Umar M. Hadejia, psc, MNIM, strongly condemns the alleged act and warns that the Command will deal decisively, within the law, with individuals whose actions threaten religious harmony, public order, and peaceful coexistence.

“Members of the public are urged to promptly report suspicious activities to the Police through 09039911876 or 07081074395. All information will be treated with utmost confidentiality.”

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Crime

PHOTOS: Gunmen abduct 14 passengers in Benue

Published

2 days ago

August 15, 2026

Oluwagbenga Olaoye

Gunmen have abducted 14 passengers travelling along the Otukpo–Adoka road in Benue State.

The incident occurred on Thursday night, August 13, 2026 when an 18-seater commercial bus travelling from Enugu State to Abuja was reportedly ambushed along the Ankpechi–Omutele axis of Ohimini Local Government Area.

A resident, Ochai, who spoke with punch on Friday, said the gunmen forced all the passengers into the surrounding forest.

“Some gunmen ambushed an 18-seater bus heading to Abuja between Omutele and Ankpechi along Otukpo -Adola road yesterday (Thursday) night. All the passengers in the vehicle were whisked away by the gunmen,” he said.

The spokesperson for the Benue State Police Command, DSP Peter Aondongu, who confirmed the incident in a statement said five of the victims have so far been rescued.

According to the PPRO, the police launched a coordinated rescue operation early Friday.

Aondongu said the operation involved an exchange of gunfire between the security operatives and the kidnappers.

“The Benue State Police Command has confirmed a kidnapping incident involving a commercial passenger bus travelling from Enugu State to Abuja along the Ankpechi–Omutele axis of Ohimini Local Government Area on the night of 13 August 2026,” the statement read

“Following the incident, operatives of the command commenced a coordinated rescue operation early this (Friday) morning. The operation, which involved an exchange of gunfire, has so far resulted in the successful rescue of five victims, including a four-year-old boy, while nine others remain in the custody of the suspected kidnappers.”

The police spokesperson disclosed that one of the rescued victims sustained a gunshot injury during the operation and was taken to a medical facility in Otukpo for treatment.

He said the police, working with other security agencies, had intensified efforts to secure the release of the remaining nine victims.

According to Aondongu, the operation was being conducted cautiously, with the safety of the abducted passengers prioritised.

The Commissioner of Police in the state, Cletus Nwadiogbu, also assured the victims’ families and members of the public that efforts would continue until the remaining passengers were rescued.

He urged residents of the affected communities to remain vigilant and provide security agencies with credible information that could aid the rescue operation.