Guardian Nigeria
Justice Peter Lifu of a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, yesterday, sentenced a 39-year-old man, Obiorah Chigozie Samuel, to two years imprisonment for exporting Cannabis sativa, a prohibited ‘weed’, to the United States of America.
The judge sentenced Samuel after he was found guilty as charged by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), following his change of plea.
His offence bordered on conspiracy, unlawful possession of 3,150kg of Cannabis sativa, and exportation of the same.
He had pleaded not guilty to the charge and was granted bail on December 8, 2023, with some terms. However, on January 30, the defendant changed his plea, and pleaded guilty to the same charge.
Based on his guilty plea, on February 6, 2024, the prosecutor, Mrs Juliana Imaobong Iroabuchi, tendered 12 exhibits, which included the defendant’s confessional statements, bulk of the seized prohibited drug, his handsets, and others.
The exhibits were admitted and the prosecutor urged the court to convict the defendant as charged.
The convict’s counsel, Mr Dennis Warri, asked mercy for the convict. The counsel, therefore, urged the court to give an option of fine.
Opposing the counsel’s plea for leniency, the prosecutor told the court that the convict is an unrepentant criminal, who did not plead guilty at first instance, and that his change of plea was an afterthought.
