Abuja Court Sentences South African Woman to Effective 25 Years for Importing 5.75kg Heroin
A Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced a 38-year-old South African woman to an effective 25 years in prison after she pleaded guilty to importing 5.75 kilogrammes of heroin into Nigeria.
Justice Obiora Egwuatu imposed 15 years on the first count and 25 years on the second, ordering both terms to run concurrently.
That means the longer 25-year sentence determines the effective custodial term, despite some reports describing the combined punishment as 40 years.
Arrest at Abuja Airport
According to court and NDLEA reporting, the woman was arrested on July 6 during passenger clearance at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja after arriving on a Qatar Airways flight from Doha.
Investigators said 14 blocks of heroin weighing 5.75kg were found in her luggage.
She was later arraigned before the Federal High Court and pleaded guilty to conspiracy and unlawful importation charges.
The court subsequently convicted her on both counts.
During sentencing, she asked the court for leniency and expressed remorse.
Why Some Reports Say 40 Years
The two terms imposed by the court add up numerically to 40 years.
But they are to run concurrently, not consecutively.
That means the sentences run at the same time, leaving the longer 25-year term as the effective maximum custodial sentence.
The court also ordered that the seized heroin be destroyed if no appeal is filed within the period allowed by law.
The case now moves into the post-judgment stage, subject to any appeal against the conviction or sentence.
