Stanley Chukwudi, a 27-year-old man, was given a three-year prison term for illegally distributing Cannabis sativa, also known as marijuana.
On April 6, 2022, near Iddo Motor Park in the Oyingbo district, agents of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, or NDLEA, arrested the felon along with the illegal marijuana.
His offence violated Section 11 (b) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act Cap N30 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, and was punishable under that Act, according to the prosecutor, Mahmud Erondu, who presented him to the court for arraignment.
The convict had pleaded guilty when the charge was read to him. And the prosecutor had urged the court to Convict and sentence him in accordance with the section of the law he was charged.
But his lawyer, Mrs. Bolanle Kolawole, pleaded with the court to tamper justice with mercy in sentencing him, saying that her client was a first-time convict, who never wasted the precious time of the court.
She told the court that her client is suffering from a serious ailment, which if given a custodian sentence may not have adequate medical treatment.
She, therefore, pleaded with the court to consider the option of a fine instead of the custodian sentence.
Responding, the prosecutor confirmed to the court that the convict has no previous record of conviction.
Following the submissions of counsel, Justice Akintayo Aluko, after citing several plethoras of authorities, sentenced the convict to three years imprisonment.
The judge also ordered that the convict shall perform community service for two hours each in two weeks, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport command of the NDLEA.
However, the judge ordered the convict to pay the sum of N400,000, fine instead of the custodian sentence.