252 Drug Suspects Arrested, 57 Convicted In 2023 – Osun NDLEA

The Osun State Command of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, said it arrested 252 suspects and seized 1,909.6920kg of illicit drugs in the state for the year 2023.

The Agency gave the breakdown of the suspects as 214 males and 38 females.

According to a statement by the Public Affairs Officer of the Command, Charles Odigie, a copy obtained by Osun Defender in Osogbo on Saturday, the command also secured the convictions of 57 accused persons who were sentenced to various jail terms, with 47 cases pending within the year under focus.

The statement noted that the state Commander, Nnadi Chidi, said there was a reduction in the supply of drugs in 2023.

The Commander said the effort of officers of the Agency led to the discovery and destruction of 9.5 hectares of Cannabis rms ( 23.759 tones) of cannabis sativa at Ifedayo and Oriade Local Government Areas.

Chidi also said the Agency embarked on War Against Drug Abuse( WADA) advocacy on substance abuse suppression in the State.

The statement further stated that “The Agency had a brief counselling intervention of 79 People Who Use Drug (PWUD) and also embarked on awareness/sensitization programs in Religious houses, Schools, Motor Parks, Markets and Workplaces etc.

“The State Commander refuted an earlier aspersion alluded to Osun State as the second highest cannabis producing State in the South West.

“He stressed that though there was a slight increase in the use of ‘loud ” and other cannabis strains in the State, but empirically and going by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) 2018 report, Osun State remain 5th in the prevalence of Drug Use and Cultivation in South West region.”