By: Kebba Ansu Manneh
Operatives of the Drug Law Enforcement Agency of The Gambia (DLEAG) have arrested two Sierra Leoneans and one Gambian for alleged trafficking of Kush and Tramadol-prohibited drugs into the country.
DLEAG revealed that the seized prohibited substances are the largest consignment of Kush and Tramadol to be brought into the country, with the arrest taking place at Bundung Garage in the Kanifing Municipality Area.
Preliminary investigations reveal that a driver was contracted to transport drugs from Sierra Leone to The Gambia for $200 and has been arrested with two others at the Bundung Garage.
“Operatives of DLEAG’s Brusubi field office took into custody three (3) people for drug trafficking-related offenses. Thirty-three years Samuel Williams, a Sierra Leonean national, 28 years Mustapha Trawally, a Sierra Leonean national, and 20 years Alieu Bah, a Gambian national were arrested at Guinea garage in Bundung on the 29th of February 2024 around 16:00 hours GMT onwards with two (2) big bundles of suspected kush and one thousand (1000) tablets of 225 milligrams of tramadol hydrochloride,” DLEAG disclosed in a statement.
It added: “The quantity of kush seized in this case is so far the single biggest seizure of kush since the advent of this prohibited drug in the local illicit drug market. The strength of the tramadol is also the highest.”
The recipients who arrived on a motorcycle (MC KM 2417 D) to collect the said drugs were arrested and taken into custody alongside the driver for further investigations into the matter. The seizure of tramadols with a strength of 225 milligrams is highly worrying,” DLEAG noted.
It continued: “It shows the complex and unregulated nature of the illicit drug market. Similarly, it highlights the need for a thorough and critical review of the drug situation for a better understanding of the underlying factors causing severe medical complications arising from the abuse of drugs.”
“What is even more worrying is that most of the drugs in the illicit drug market are produced in clandestine laboratories that are without quality standards and control. Therefore, it becomes tough to know or understand the chemical composition of these drugs, potential effects and reactions, and the contraindications of using them,” DLEAG highlighted.
The Agency finally called on the general public, particularly the youth, to value their lives and make a healthy choice by keeping away from drug abuse and shunning all forms of drug-related activities, noting that as an institution, the Agency will continue to track down traffickers, of prohibited drugs in the country and anyone found wanting will face the law.
