Geita district security officials and Tanzania Forest Services destroyed a cannabis plot covering 3.5 acres (about 1.42 hectares) in the Rwamgasa tree plantation forest reserve on 4 February 2026.[1][2] The plot was planted among maize within a reserve that the reports describe as covering 28,160 acres.[1][2]

Senior Conservator Aloyce Paschal said routine patrols found the plot and that alternating rows of maize and cannabis made it difficult to see from a distance.[1] Geita District Administrative Secretary Lucy Beda, speaking for the district commissioner, urged residents to stop farming and grazing inside the reserve.[1][2]

Beda said the reserve’s trees should be protected for future generations and linked forest protection to rainfall.[1][2]

The reports said one suspect was detained and referred to legal authorities.[1][2] They did not give a plant count or weight for the destroyed cannabis.[1][2]