Relatives of suspected drug traffickers held by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in Edo State have raised concerns over alleged prolonged detention without trial or access to medical care.
The concerns followed the death of a 52-year-old suspect, Titilayo Akinsola, who died during arraignment at the Federal High Court in Benin City. She was reportedly arrested at her residence in Ogida Quarters in January 2026.
The deceased’s son, Samuel Akinsola, claimed that his mother had spent about three months in detention without being arraigned or receiving medical attention. He said repeated appeals to NDLEA officials in recent weeks to either grant her bail or take her to court were unsuccessful.
“They (NDLEA) brought her to court on Monday but she was very weak, so they postponed it till Tuesday. Meanwhile, the woman had been complaining that she did not have strength anymore. No medical attention was given to her before she died.”
Some lawyers who were present during the incident also stated that the woman appeared visibly weak at the time of her arraignment, adding that prompt medical attention was not provided when she collapsed.
A lawyer, Douglas Ogbankwa, said: “This is very unacceptable. Look at this woman that died. I think we should change the way things are done in NDLEA throughout the country. They detain suspects for two, three months without arraignment, and when taken to court, most of them (suspects) are already gone. We sound the warning to Maj-Gen. Mohammed Marwa (rtd) that he should call his men to order.
Another lawyer, Osa Uwadia, said: “We were all here when the suspect collapsed, and what they were supposed to do was to take her to the hospital for medical attention, but the officers refused. When she came, I saw her there, she couldn’t even walk.”
However, the Edo State Commander of NDLEA, Mitchell Ofoyeju, dismissed claims of negligence, stating that there was no indication the deceased was unfit to stand trial.
“There was no issue that she was not physically fit \when she was arraigned. She personally walked to the car, got to the court and came down herself. What happened is not something you can start trading blame.
“When she collapsed, it attracted a crowd and there were other suspects. The officers had to secure other accused persons to avoid their dispersion with the crowd.”
