Mensah, who was arraigned before the court by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on a one-count charge of dealing in narcotics, was handed the verdict after he pleaded guilty to the crime.
Counsel to the NDLEA, Orji Kalu, had informed the court that the offence was contrary and punishable under Section 11(c) of the NDLEA Act, Cap N30, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
While reviewing the facts of the case, Kalu told the court that the convict was caught by NDLEA operatives at Abule Egba in Lagos, in possession of the illicit substance.
The prosecution supported its case by tendering various exhibits before the court, including the bulk of the substance seized from Mensah and the confessional statement that the convict was said to have freely made to the anti-narcotic agency.
Mensah’s lawyer, G.U. Okaka, urged the court to temper justice with mercy, stating that the accused had saved the time of the court by pleading guilty.
Sentencing the accused, Justice Abang declared that Mensah did not mean well for the country and her citizens.
“Mensah’s action can ruin the lives of Nigeria teeming youths. He has no respect for the corporate existence of Nigeria,” the judge said.
“You cannot willingly commit a crime and, when caught, beg the court for mercy; society does not improve that way. There must be punishment for wrongdoing to deter others from engaging in criminal activities, the judge stressed.
Justice Abang thereafter sentenced the accused to 17 years imprisonment.
The sentence, according to the judge, shall begin to run from June 29, 2015.
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