2 men bag 5 years imprisonment each for possession of hemp in Osun

Justice Peter Lifu sentenced the duo after they pleaded guilty to a charge of possession of hemp

The judge said after considering carefully the allocutus and testimonies of the prosecution, he discovered that the convicts were remorseful for their crimes.

“Also considering their age, I am giving them five years imprisonment each, as against the minimum of 15 years, as deterrence to others, who are into illicit drugs,’’ he said.

He said their sentences should, however, begin from the day they were detained at the custody of the National Drugs and Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).

Lifu instructed the NDLEA to destroy the exhibits recovered from the convicts.

Earlier, the Defense Counsel, Mr Awoniyi David, asked for leniency in sentencing his clients, saying they had learnt their lessons while in detention and decided to turn over a new leaf.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the NDLEA prosecution team, led by Mr Ogaga Azugo, had arraigned the defendants on Nov. 16, 2017 on a charge of cultivating hemp at Ikeji-Arakeji in Osun.

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The prosecution, however, substituted the charge to possession of hemp, which contravened Section 19 of the NDLEA Act, Cap No 30, Laws of Nigeria, 2004.