Man jailed 5 months for unlawful possession of Indian hemp

Justice Mohammed Garba, of the Federal High Court in Kaduna, on Wednesday, sentenced Ahmed Rabiu, 25, to five months imprisonment for unlawful possession of 200 grammes of Indian hemp.

Garba sentenced Rabiu after he pleaded guilty to the charge of possession of illegal substances.

The judge did not give the convict an option of fine but ordered that his jail term should commence from the day of his arrest.

In his judgment, Garba said the prosecution had convinced the court beyond reasonable doubt that the accused had committed the offence.

He said that the evidence tendered before the court by the prosecutor assisted the court in convicting the accused.

“The court also relied on the confessional statement of the accused, and it has no option but to convict the accused based on the strength of his plea,” the judge said.

He advised the convict to desist from criminal behaviour, warning that the court would not be lenient in future if he was caught committing any criminal act.

Earlier, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA)’s prosecuting counsel, T. J. Atserhegh, told the court that the defendant was arrested at Mando Area of Kaduna, with 200 grammes of the substance.

“The convict was arrested on May 24, while in possession of the illicit substance, and was peddling it to innocent young men in his area,” he said.

The prosecutor tendered a certificate of test analysis of the substance, certificate of parking of substance, the statement of the accused and the recovered cannabis sativa, as exhibits.

Atserhegh said that the defendant had committed an offence contrary to Section 19, Sub-section 30, of the amended NDLEA Law of 2004.