Abuja, July 2, 2024 – Freeman Charles Ogbonna, a drug trafficker who was arrested and prosecuted by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), has been sentenced to 25 years imprisonment by a Federal High Court.
Femi Babafemi, the NDLEA Spokesman, disclosed this in a statement in Abuja on Tuesday.
He said Ogbonna was arrested on Sunday March 31, while attempting to board his flight to Delhi, India via Doha on Qatar Airways, with a Liberian international passport, bearing the name: Carr Bismark.
The statement reads: “The suspect who claimed he was recruited into drug trafficking by one of his relatives eventually passed out a total of 80 wraps of cocaine weighing 889 grams through his mouth and anus over a period of four days.
“The great risk that almost took his life notwithstanding, Ogbonna said he was given the drugs to swallow at a hotel in the Ipodo area of Ikeja with a promise to reward him with N300,000 cash if he successfully delivered the consignment in India.
“He was subsequently arraigned before Justice Dipeolu Deinde Isaac of the Federal High Court, Lagos in charge number FHCL/378/2024 for committing an offence contrary to section 20(1)(b) and punishable under section 20(2)(a) of the NDLEA Act Cap N30 LFN 2004. Delivering his judgement on the case on Monday 1st July 2024, Justice Dipeolu sentenced Ogbonna to 25 years in prison without an option of fine.”
Babafemi said Brig Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), the Chief Executive of NDLEA, had commended the MMIA Command and the prosecution team for the fast and diligent handling of the case.
He said the judiciary remained a strong pillar in the coordinated and concerted effort to curb the scourge of substance abuse and illicit drug trafficking in Nigeria.
Marwa said Ogbonna’s conviction would further send a strong signal to his ilk that there will be no hiding place for drug barons and their mules.
