FG ARRAIGN SENIOR IMMIGRATION OFFICER, THREE OTHERS FOR ALLEGED DRUG TRAFFICKING

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Akomolafe Gbenga Michael, a senior immigration officer working out of Lagos’s Murtala Muhammad International Airport in Ikeja, has been charged by the Federal Government.

Judge Daniel Osiagor of the Federal High Court, located in Lagos, arraigned him and three other individuals on a nine-count allegation of alleged conspiracy, unlawful possession, importation, and dealing in forbidden narcotics.

Specifically, it was claimed that he was involved in the trafficking of 8. kg of methamphetamine and 7.60 kg of cannabis sativa, or marijuana.

Along with the immigration officer, three other people were also arraigned on the charges: Nwadozie Chris Amaechi, Nwosu Chinedu Cyril, and Babatunde Michael Olufemi, who is reportedly employed by the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).

The four members of a heavy drug syndicate were apprehended on May 21, 2024, while attempting to transport the illegal narcotics out of the Murtala Muhammad International Airport in Ikeja, Lagos, according to the prosecutor, Abu Ibrahim, who testified in court.

Ibrahim also informed the court that the four individuals, along with the South African pair Nwadozie Sunday and Echezona Nwosu, plotted to carry out the alleged crimes.

The immigration officer, Akomolafe, was charged with six counts of conspiracy, unlawful importation, unlawful possession, and trafficking in prohibited substances. Meanwhile, Olufemi, Nwadozie, and Nwosu, who were allegedly employees of FAAN, were charged with three counts each of conspiracy, unlawful importation, and possession of prohibited substances.

The prosecutor told the court that the alleged criminal act of the four men contravened sections 14 (b), 21 (2)(d), and 20 (1)(c) punishable under sections 11(b) and 20 (2)(b) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act Cap. N30, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.

However, while the other three members of the gang pleaded guilty to the charges, the Immigration officer denied the offences and pleaded not guilty to all the counts of the charge.

Based on the not-guilty plea of the Immigration officer, his lawyer, Benson Ndakara, pleaded with the court to admit him to bail in the most liberal terms.

In his ruling, Justice Osiagor admitted Akomolafe to bail in the sum of N10 million with one surety.

The judge also ordered that the surety must be a civil servant of an assistant director cadre in the employment of Lagos State or the Federal Government.

The trial was then adjourned to November 7, 2024. Based on their guilty plea, the court convicted and sentenced the trio of Babatunde Micheal Olufemi, Nwadozie Chris Amaechi, and Nwosu Chinedu Cyril, to four years on each count. The sentence is to run concurrently.

The three convicts were also given the option of paying a fine of N2 million each on each count.