The Delta State Police Command has recorded a major breakthrough in its fight against drug trafficking and violent crime with the arrest of an alleged female drug baron and the recovery of stolen vehicles in separate sting operations.
The spokesperson for the command, DSP Bright Edafe, disclosed that operatives of the Ughelli Area Command, acting on credible intelligence, raided the Afisere area of Ughelli on August 29, 2025. During the operation, they arrested 52-year-old Egbule Isioma, who ran a chemist shop opposite Afisere Town Hall.
She was arrested alongside three suspected apprentices identified as Mercy John, Favour John and Amarachi Ngozi. A subsequent search of her residence at No. 31 Edile Street, Afisere, yielded a large haul of illicit substances.
Items recovered included 355 bottles of CSC Codeine, 57 rolls of 50mg Tramadol capsules, 335 rolls of 100mg Tramadol capsules, 33 rolls of 200mg Super Royal, 540 sachets of Swinol capsules, seven packs of Backwoods and 16 cups of Canadian liquid cannabis.
Edafe said preliminary investigations confirmed Isioma as a major supplier of hard drugs within Ughelli and surrounding communities, adding that police efforts were ongoing to track her supply network.
In another operation on August 24, 2025, police arrested a robbery suspect and recovered two luxury SUVs.
“Acting on information that two luxury SUVs were about to be sold at suspiciously low prices, the Ughelli Area Commander led a combined surveillance team to a hotel along Effurun-Sapele Road. There, they arrested 35-year-old Igenebo John, a native of Estako East Local Council of Edo State. Upon interrogation, the suspect confessed to possessing the vehicles, a black Mercedes-Benz GLK350 (Reg. No. ABJ420CY) and a white Lexus RX350 (Reg. No. RSH319CB),” Edafe said.
The suspect later led police to recover the Mercedes-Benz at the hotel and the Lexus at Edu Street, off Jakpa Road, near Eco Bank in Uvwie.
“Further investigation revealed that the Lexus RX350 was owned by Nathaniel Ugbebe, who reported that his residence in Amukpe, Sapele, was invaded by five armed men on August 17, 2025, around 2:25 a.m. They stole valuables including smartphones and also transferred N1.9 million from his mobile banking app to a PoS account before fleeing with his vehicle,” Edafe added.
According to him, the suspect confessed that the vehicles were handed to him by an individual identified as Ameachi, who claimed they belonged to his late brother.
Police are currently on the trail of Ameachi and other syndicate members, with efforts underway to recover the weapons used during the robbery and other stolen items.
