25th October, 2016
A Federal High Court in Lagos on Tuesday sentenced a 31-year-old tea vendor, Adamu Dungus, to nine months imprisonment for trafficking in 300 grammes of Tramadol.
Tramadol, a psychotropic substance, is on the government’s prohibition list of drugs.
The convict, who was arraigned by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for a charge of drug trafficking, had pleaded guilty.
Following his guilty plea, the prosecutor, Mr Jeremiah Aernan, asked for the review of the facts of the case.
He tendered before the court the statement of the accused to NDLEA, a request for scientific aid form, as well as the bulk of exhibit.
Earlier, the prosecutor, urged the court to sentence the accused based on the evidence and exhibits presented by the prosecution.
Delivering his judgment, Justice Muslim Hassan, said “the accused is guilty as charged”.
He sentenced him to nine months in jail which, he said, would start running from the date of his arrest.
The court also ordered the NDLEA to destroy the exhibits.
While reviewing the facts, Aernan told the court that the accused committed the offence on April 10 and that he was arrested at Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals Company at Ibeju-Lekki in Lagos.
According to him, about 300 grammes of Tramadol was seized from the tea vendor, who was selling the drug.
The offence contravened the provisions of Sections 11 (c) of the NDLEA Act, Laws of the Federation 2004.