Operatives from the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) have dismantled an organized drug distribution network targeting students, arresting ten suspects during a targeted weekend raid conducted between Friday, July 31, and Saturday, August 1, 2026.
The Commission identified 23-year-old Priscilla Tetteh as the suspected ringleader of the operation. She was arrested alongside nine young men believed to be part of an organized syndicate commercializing narcotic substances on school grounds.
Caught in the Act Following Months of Surveillance
The suspects were apprehended while actively selling illicit products to students and attendees at a campus event. NACOC revealed that the raid was the culmination of an intelligence-led operation that had been covertly monitoring activities on the campus for months.
Preliminary field tests conducted on-site confirmed the presence of cannabis in several seized items disguised as ordinary refreshments, including:
"Abele" Ice Cream: Cups of the popular local ice cream infused with cannabis derivatives.
Beverages: Cannabis-laced sobolo (hibiscus tea), pineapple juice, and fresh palm wine.
Expressing grave concern over the bust, NACOC condemned what it described as an "emerging criminal enterprise exploiting social events and educational institutions to promote the abuse of narcotic substances among the youth."
Troubling Pattern Across Tertiary Institutions
The weekend arrest marks the second major campus drug bust by NACOC in recent months, signaling a growing trend of individuals commercializing narcotics under the guise of student entrepreneurship and entertainment.
In June 2026, a similar raid at Central University led to the arrest of five students—identified as Raphael Tetteh Konotey (22), Abu Mohammed (20), Leonard Daniel Obeng (21), Emmanuel Kwaku Divine (21), and Bethel Yeboah (21). That syndicate was caught manufacturing and selling cannabis-infused ice cream, sobolo, toffees, raw cannabis, and traditional pepper and eggs (nkosua ne meko), prompting university management to suspend all remaining SRC Week activities.
NACOC Issues Stern Warning to Event Vendors
Addressing the shift in drug concealment tactics, NACOC Deputy Director Alexander Twum-Barima recently warned that syndicates are intentionally hiding cannabis derivatives inside everyday snacks sold by food vendors during school functions.
He cautioned that vendors are increasingly using campus activity periods to distribute laced foods, such as nkosua ne meko and ice cream, to unsuspecting students.
NACOC reiterated that educational institutions must remain "centres of learning, innovation and character development, not safe havens for drug trafficking and substance abuse."
All ten suspects remain in NACOC custody and will be processed for prosecution in accordance with the law. The Commission assured the public that intelligence-led sweeps will be intensified nationwide to protect students and vulnerable demographics from narcotics networks.
