Police crack down on drug peddling in Tamale, 27 in custody

Police in the Northern Region have arrested 27 people after a series of coordinated raids targeting drug peddling in and around Tamale on November 19.

The operation, carried out by the Regional Police Command with support from the IGP’s Special Operations Team, focused on known drug hotspots across the metropolis.

Those picked up include Iddrisu Abdul Bassit, Iddrisu Sadick, Yawuza Hishan, Yakubu Yussif, Alhassan Abukari, Mutaru Daniel Fisco, Ibrahim Abdul Wakil, Hawa Abdul Rahman, Latifa Iddrisu, Mariam Fuseini, Ibrahim Sadia and Alima Iddrisu, as well as Issah Latifa and several others yet to be identified.

Police say they seized dried leaves suspected to be cannabis, packaged in polythene bags, along with five motorbikes believed to have been used in the trade.

Follow-up operations in other parts of Tamale led to more arrests, bringing the total to 27. All the suspects were later handed over to the Northern Regional Drug Law Enforcement Unit for further investigation.

Nine of them, five women and four men, appeared before the Tamale Circuit Court on November 21, charged with possessing narcotic drugs without lawful authority.

Another suspect faced charges of unlawful possession of arms and ammunition. They all pleaded not guilty and were granted bail.

The remaining 18 suspects have been remanded into police custody as investigations continue.