Court Jails Ex-Convicted Drug Dealer for Illegal Possession of Cocaine, Indian Hemp

Wale  Igbintade

A Federal High Court in Lagos has convicted and sentenced an ex-convicted drug dealer, Adelakun Ilelabayo Oluade, and one Nruama Chinemelum Precious, to 18 years imprisonment for illegal possession of 8.49 kilograms of Cocaine and 28.8 kilograms of Cannabis Sativa, popularly called Indian hemp.

Justice Akintayo Aluko convicted the drug dealers after they pleaded guilty to six count-charge of conspiracy, unlawful possession and dealing in the banned drug.

The prosecutor, Mr. Umar Hussain, while arraigning the convicted men, told the court that they were arrested with the prohibited drugs, on August 4, 2023, at Atlantic Ocean Nominee Estate along Lekki-Epe Express Way, Lagos.

Hussain informed the court that the two convicts were arrested with 8.49 kilograms of Cocaine and 10.3 kilograms of Cannabis Sativa. 

He said the first convict, Nruama Chinemelum Precious, was arrested with 18.5 kilograms of Cannabis sativa, at at Flat Alb/A2, House 7A, Road 7, Lagra Estate, Eti Osa, off Lekki-Epe Express Way, Lagos.

He told the court that the illegal acts of the convicts contravened Sections 14 (b),19 and 11(c) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act CAP N30 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004 (As amended), and punishable under the same Act.

The prosecutor also told the court that the second convict, Adelakun Ilelabayo Oluade, has once been arrested and prosecuted by NDLEA and convicted and sentenced to 2 years imprisonment by Justice Saliu Saidu (now retired), for unlawful dealing and possession of the prohibited drugs.

He therefore urged the court to convict and sentence the two drug dealers in accordance with the sections of the NDLEA Acts, that they were charged with.

However, the convicts’ counsel, Mr. Uche Okoronkwwo, pleaded with the court to temper justice with mercy in sentencing his clients. 

In pleading for mercy, Uche urged the court to consider the early guilty plea of his clients, as a sign of remorse, adding that his clients have vowed not to go back to crime anymore.

He also begged the court to consider an option of fine in lieu of the custodian sentence.

Awarding sentence to the convict, Justice Aluko sentenced the first convict, Uruama Chinemelum Precious, to three years with a fine option of N300, 000, 00, in each of six counts.

The judge ordered that the jail-term shall run concurrently while the fine option will run consecutively. He ordered that the convict to serve the jail terms, will spend three years in prison, but if not, he will pay the sum of  N2.4 million.

The judge also ordered the convict to perform a month community service of an hour daily, at Eti-osa Local Government Area of Lagos State.

The judge however sentenced the convict, Adelakun Ilelabayo Oluade, to the same jail-term but without an option of fine, on the ground that he had earlier been convicted for the similar offences.