Father of six bags nine months for drugs | The Guardian Nigeria News

The Federal High Court in Lagos on Friday sentenced 49-year-old carpenter and father of six Ademola Oke to nine months in prison for drug trafficking.

The convict was arraigned before Justice Ayokunle Faji on November 1 by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on a two-count charge bordering on trafficking in illicit drugs.

He pleaded guilty to the charges.

The accused’s lawyer pleaded with the court to temper justice with mercy, saying his client is a first-time offender. He added that he would turn over a new leaf.

Delivering his ruling on Friday, Judge Fudgey noted that the convict, a father of six, had been illegally selling drugs as a means of subsistence for the past six years.

He subsequently sentenced him to nine months’ imprisonment on the first count and nine months on the second count.

He believed that the terms should run concurrently with the date of arrest.

The prosecutor, Mr Korinjo Aondofa, reviewed the facts of the case after his arraignment and presented a number of documents to support his case. The documents included: a request form for scientific assistance, a form for packaging the substance, a statement from the convicted person, the volume of the substance and a transparent bag.

He asked the court to convict and sentence the accused based on his statement and the prosecution evidence.

Accordingly, the court found the defendant guilty as charged.

The convict, according to the prosecutor, was caught with 181 grams of marijuana and 4.48 grams of methamphetamine, which are classified by the NDLEA as illegal drugs similar to cocaine and heroin.

The offense was contrary to the provisions of Section 11(c) of the NDLEA, Cap N30 of the Law of the Federation 2004.