By Jude-Ken Ojinnaka
A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos on Wednesday convicted and sentenced a hard drug trafficker Azubuike Jeremiah Emeka to 5 years imprisonment for importing 7.8 grammes of Cocaine, a prohibited hard drug into the country without lawful authority.
The presiding judge, Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke pronounced the jail term after Azubuike Jeremiah Emeka (defendant) pleaded guilty to one count charge of drug trafficking preferred against him by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA)
According to the charge dated January 20, 2021 and signed by Barrister Augustine Nwagu, the NDLEA prosecuting counsel, the defendant was said to have on or about the 8th day of January, 2021 during the outward clearance of Ethiopian Airline flight from Sao-Paulo Brazil, via Addis Ababa at ‘E’ arrival Hall of Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Ikeja Lagos within the jurisdiction of the court, without lawful authority imported 7.8 grammes of Cocaine.
According to the charge, the offence committed by the defendant is contrary and punishable under Section 11(a) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act Cap N 30 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
After listening to the charge preferred against him, the defendant pleaded guilty.
Consequent upon the defendant’s plea of guilty, the prosecutor Mr Nwagu reviewed the facts of the case and urged the court to convict the defendant in accordance with the law as charged.
Having carefully listened to the prosecution’s submission, evidence adduced and items tendered and admitted as exhibits, Justice Aneke convicted the defendant and asked the defence counsel for allocutus.
In his allocutus (plea for mercy), counsel to the defendant Dennis Warri urged the court to tamper justice with mercy for the convict.
He told the court that the convict is first time offender with no previous record of crime.
He said that the defendant has shown remorse as he did not waste the time of the court.
The defence counsel urged the judge to use his discretion and consider a non custodial sentence and an option of fine.
After listening to the allocutus by the defence counsel coupled with the affirmation by the prosecution that the convict has no previous crime record, Justice Aneke sentenced Azubuike Jeremiah Emeka to 5 years imprisonment.
However the judge gave the convict an option of fine of N3 million.
