A South African woman, Will Ann, has been sentenced to 25 years imprisonment for trafficking 5.75kg of heroin into Nigeria.
Justice Obiora Egwuatu of the Federal High Court handed down the sentence on Wednesday, stating that Nigerian law does not respect emotions.
Ann was arrested at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, during inward clearance of passengers on Qatar Airways Flight QR1433 from Doha on July 6.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) said she was arrested in July while travelling with her three-year-old son.
She was arraigned in August and pleaded guilty to unlawfully importing 5.75 kilograms of heroin into the country.
Delivering judgment, Justice Egwuatu held that the defendant had admitted to committing the offence in her extrajudicial statement before her guilty plea, adding that the law is settled that conviction follows a plea of guilty.
The court consequently convicted her.
After her conviction, the prosecution urged the court to consider the street value of the drug, put at about N18 million per kilogram, in sentencing.
Ann begged the court to temper justice with mercy, promising never to engage in such an act again. She said she was remorseful and did not know there were illicit drugs in the bag.
The judge said “crime does not pay” and that the law is not influenced by emotions.
He sentenced her to 15 years imprisonment on Count 1 and 25 years imprisonment on Count 2, ordering that the terms run concurrently.
The court also ordered that the seized heroin be destroyed if the convict fails to appeal within the period prescribed by law.
