Arraignment of a 42-year-old Indian woman, Ms Neetu Neetu, charged with trafficking of illicit substances at the Federal High Court, Kano, yesterday, stalled due to the absence of an interpreter.

When the matter came for hearing before Justice Simon Amobeda, counsel to the defendant, B Y Gambo, drew the court’s attention to the inability of his client to speak or comprehend English.

Gambo argued that it is the prosecution’s responsibility to provide a language interpreter for the defendant, insisting that he would not continue to expend fortune in United States (U.S) dollar for interpreters.

Responding, counsel to Nigerian Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Umar Hussain, argued that the excuse by the defendant’s counsel was intended to unduly prolong the prosecution.

Hussain advised the defendant to continue with the usual means of communication to save the cause of prosecution. Justice Amobeda, however, overruled the prosecution counsel, insisting that it is the responsibility of NDLEA and not the defendant to bear the cost of providing an interpreter for the Indian national.

The presiding Judge, therefore, ruled that until an interpreter is secured to bridge the language barrier, the case may not proceed. The court was adjourned till June 4, 2025, for possible arraignment, subject to the provision of an interpreter while directing the defendant to remain in the custody of NDLEA.

Neetu was arrested by the NDLEA on Friday, March 14, 2025, at the Mallam Aminu International Airport, Kano, with 72 parcels of factory-sealed heroin in wafer wraps and packaged as chocolates.

The class A drug consignment, weighing 11 kilogrammes, according to NDLEA, was recovered from Neetu’s luggage after a thorough search, following credible intelligence.

Until her interception, Neetu was about to board Qatar Airways flight QR1431 from Bangkok, Thailand, via Vietnam and Doha at the arrival hall of the Kano airport.