A Federal High Court in Lagos has sentenced a Canada returnee, Abimbola Daniel, to 11 years in prison for unlawfully importing and possessing 2.5 kilogrammes of cannabis.
Justice Akintayo Aluko handed down the sentence on Monday after Daniel pleaded guilty to a two-count charge brought against him by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency.
The case, marked FHC/LAG/CR/609/2026, involved the unlawful importation and possession of cannabis.
The prosecutor, Arit Okon, told the court that Daniel brought the prohibited substance into Nigeria from Canada aboard an Ethiopian Airlines flight.
Okon said the cannabis was concealed in a cargo covered by waybill number 07161185795.
He added that Daniel had engaged Afriway Cargo and Logistics, located on Anthony Udo Avenue, International Airport Road, Ikeja, Lagos, to clear the consignment.
According to the prosecution, the convict was arrested when he went to collect the cargo after it arrived in the country.
Further investigations following his arrest led to his arraignment on the two charges.
The NDLEA said the offences contravened Sections 11(2) and 20(1) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act, Cap. N30, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004, and were punishable under Section 20(2) of the Act.
When the charges were read to him, Daniel admitted to the offences and entered a guilty plea.
Following his plea, an NDLEA exhibit keeper, Abdullahi Musa, reviewed the facts of the case and tendered the exhibits before the court. The exhibits were subsequently admitted in evidence.
The prosecution urged the court to convict and sentence Daniel, relying on his guilty plea, the evidence presented and relevant provisions of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015.
However, counsel to the convict, Benson Ndakara, leading Dennis Warri, pleaded for leniency.
The defence urged the court to consider Daniel’s early guilty plea and the fact that he had no previous criminal conviction. The lawyers also cited provisions of the ACJA in asking the court to consider a non-custodial sentence.
After considering the arguments from both sides and the authorities cited, Justice Aluko sentenced Daniel to five years’ imprisonment on the first count and six years on the second, making 11 years in all.
The judge, however, gave him an option of a N500,000 fine on the first count and N600,000 on the second, instead of serving the prison terms.
The charges stated that Daniel, on July 14, 2026, unlawfully imported 2.5kg of cannabis during the inward clearance of cargo with waybill number 07161185795 at the Customs Import Shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos.
The consignment had arrived aboard an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Canada.
The second count alleged that Daniel, on July 15, 2026, unlawfully possessed the same quantity of cannabis at Afriway Cargo and Logistics in Ajao Estate, Ikeja.