1,240 kg of cannabis seized in Ouaké minibus, driver held
Police in Sèmèrè, Ouaké, seized 1,240.05 kg of cannabis from a minibus arriving from a neighbouring country on 13 July 2025. The driver was detained after allegedly offering officers 200,000 CFA francs to release him.
The Sèmèrè district police station seized a cannabis load from a minibus at dawn
on Sunday 13 July 2025.[1]Officers intercepted the minibus driver during the
operation.[1]The driver said the vehicle’s owner had asked him to unload the
parcels in a shop at Kassoua in Ouaké, near the market.[1]During the stop he
allegedly tried to bribe the officers with 200,000 CFA francs, which police
seized and held for the investigation.[2][3]
The minibus was carrying a load of chanvre indien, the French term for cannabis,
from a neighbouring country.[2][3]Weighed with the help of Bénin Control, the
customs partner, the load totalled 1,240.05 kg.[2][3]The seizure took place in
the commune of Ouaké in western Benin.[2][3]
Benin’s Republican Police announced the seizure on Monday 14 July 2025.[1]The
officers did not give in to the driver’s offer.[1]They seized the envelope
and held it for the needs of the investigation.[1]Police described the action
as part of their continued effort against drug trafficking.[1]
Case data
Every number and detail the sources state, with the sources that state it.
Arrested
1
Cannabis
1.24005 t
Agency type
Customs, Police
Cannabis
Herbal cannabis (1.24005 t)
Activity
Trafficking
Setting
Vehicle, Mail or parcel
Case stage
Under investigation
Sources
Banoutobanouto.bjFRTrafic de drogue : à Sèmèrè, la police béninoise saisit plus de 1,2 tonne de chanvre indien en provenance d’un pays voisin
Police in Bantè intercepted a minibus with 1,031 balls of cannabis and arrested two Togolese men after a pursuit on 11 October 2026. The sources describe 11 jute sacks but give no net weight for the cannabis.
Republican Police in Tohouè, Sèmè-Podji, seized 265.24 kg of Indian hemp from a Toyota Highlander during a night operation on 28-29 August 2026 after a tip about trafficking by sea. The driver and loaders fled and remained wanted while police investigated the shipment's origin and destination.
Republican Police found 973.65 kg of Indian hemp in 25 bags in a makeshift seaside house at Krakè-Plage on 23 July 2026. No suspects were present, and officers secured the drugs plus cash and equipment pending judicial proceedings.
Police in Bembèrèkè seized six jute sacks of cannabis with about 600 kg of estimated capacity from a bush cache near Pédarou on 28 June 2026. No suspects were arrested, and the alleged traffickers remain wanted while the sealed goods await judicial proceedings.
