From Lateef Dada, Osogbo
Justice Mashkur Salisu of a Federal High Court sitting in Osogbo, Osun State, on Monday sentenced a 25-year-old widow, Abiodun Mariam, to three years imprisonment for illegal possession of 5.150kg of cannabis sativa.
According to the charge sheet, the convict committed the crime on January 5, 2024, along Gbongan-Ibadan road, in contravention of section 11(b) of the NDLEA Act, Cap N30 laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
The convict had pleaded guilty to the one count of illegal possession of cannabis sativa pressed against her by the Nigeria Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and pleaded for mercy.
Her counsel, Alfred Adegoke, informed the court that the convict lost her parents at a younger age and also lost her husband recently.
The counsel told the court that the convict has two children brought to the court, one of which is about six months left for her by her late husband.
Adegoke, therefore, urged the court to temper justice with mercy in sentencing the convict who he claimed to be a first offender.
Justice Salisu, who considered sections 416(2) and 460(4) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), on the need for reformation of the criminal, thereby sentenced the convict to three years imprisonment with an option of N500,000 fine.