A Federal High Court, Lagos, has convicted and sentenced a man, Iyare Johnbull, to five years’ imprisonment for smuggling prohibited analgesic, tramadol, to Rome, Italy.
Johnbull was arrested with the drug, weighing 1.4 kilogrammes, on March 9, 2026, during the outward clearance of passengers aboard Turkish Airlines flight TK 0626 from Lagos to Rome via Istanbul, Turkey, at the screening point of Terminal 2 of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
Specifically, he was arrested with 500 grams of 225mg and 900 grams of 200mg of the prohibited drugs.
Following his arrest, he was arraigned before Justice Musa Kakaki on two counts of illegal export of the banned drugs.
The illegal acts, the prosecutor, Commander of Narcotics (CN) Abu Ibrahim, told the court, were contrary to Section 11(b) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act, Cap. N30, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
The convicted traveller admitted committing the offence and pleaded guilty to both counts.
Upon the guilty plea of the convict, Abu, through a witness, Moses Dogo Hyelda, tendered the seized drug, his confessional statement, travel documents and other items, which were admitted by the court.
He therefore urged the court to convict and sentence the defendant in accordance with Sections 274(2) and 356(2) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015, as well as his confessional statement and the exhibits tendered.
However, defence counsel, Benson Ndakara, pleaded with the court to be lenient and merciful with his client, stating that he was a first-time offender and did not want to waste the court’s time.
He prayed the court not to award the maximum punishment but instead give his client a non-custodial sentence.
Justice Kakaki, after confirming from the prosecutor that the convict had no prior conviction, sentenced him to five years’ imprisonment.
In acceding to the lawyer’s non-custodial request, the judge ordered the convict to pay a total of N5 million in lieu of the jail term.
The charges against the convicted traveller read: “That you, Iyare Johnbull, male, adult, on or about the 9th of March, 2026, during the outward clearance of passengers aboard Turkish Airlines flight TK 0626 from Lagos to Rome via Istanbul, Turkey, at the screening point of Terminal 2 of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, without lawful authority, exported 500 grams of Tramadol 225mg, a narcotic analgesic similar to Cocaine, Heroin and LSD, and you thereby committed an act which is an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 11(b) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act, Cap. N30, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
“That you, Iyare Johnbull, male, adult, on or about the 9th of March, 2026, during the outward clearance of passengers aboard Turkish Airlines flight TK 0626 from Lagos to Rome via Istanbul, Turkey, at the screening point of Terminal 2 of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, without lawful authority, exported 900 grams of Tramadol 200mg, a narcotic analgesic similar to Cocaine, Heroin and LSD, and you thereby committed an act which is an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 11(b) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act, Cap. N30, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.”
