Nigerian Given 10-Year Prison Sentence After Attempting To Smuggle Narcotic Through KIA
- A Nigerian has been given a 10-year prison sentence after he was apprehended trying to smuggle narcotics out of Ghana
- 32-year-old Pascal Okafor Ezugwu had 90 thumb-sized pellets of narcotics on him when he was arrested
- NACOC has assured Ghanaians of ensuring public safety by preventing the sale and trafficking of narcotics in the country
A Nigerian has been sentenced to a 10-year prison term by an Accra High Court for attempting to smuggle narcotics through the Kotoka International Airport.
The convict, 32-year-old Pascal Okafor Ezugwu, was arrested on Wednesday, February 21, 2024, by officers of the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) while going through pre-boarding formalities at the airport en route to Hanoi, Vietnam.
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A urine test conducted on him revealed traces of a narcotic substance.
He later pooped out a total of 90 thumb-sized pellets of a white substance which tested positive for narcotics weighing 1.54 kg.
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He was immediately detained and taken into police custody.
Subsequently, he was charged with three counts of narcotic offences relating to unlawful possession, attempted exportation of narcotics and money laundering.
On Friday, May 3, 2024, Pascal Ezugwu was arraigned before the Criminal Court Division of the Accra High Court, where he pled guilty to all three charges levelled against him.
He was convicted on his plea.
The court sentenced him to a minimum of ten years in prison with hard labour and fined him ten thousand penalty units, which would have required him to serve an additional three years if he failed to pay.
NACOC, in a press statement announcing the sentence, reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring public safety by preventing the trafficking, sale and use of narcotics in the country.
NACOC also warned Ghanaians against attempting to breach the law as they could face dire consequences.
NACOC seizes 20.5kg of narcotic parcels
YEN.com.gh reported that the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) had seized 20.5kg of concealed narcotic parcels intended for smuggling out of Ghana via postal and courier centres in Accra.
This was contained in a press statement issued by the Public Affairs Department of NACOC on its Facebook page on April 30, 2024.
Over three days, the commission intercepted several concealed narcotic parcels headed to the UK.
It said while some of these narcotic slabs had been wrapped and sealed in boxes, others had been packaged in black soap pails.
According to NACOC, after it was confirmed that the substances concealed in these packages were narcotic, they were transferred to NACOC headquarters for further investigation.
NACOC says it is doing everything possible to apprehend the culprits.
It cautioned Ghanaians that the possession and transit of narcotics in Ghana is punishable by law.
It urged Ghanaians to refrain from such illegal activities.
Proofread by Berlinda Entsie, journalist and copy editor at YEN.com.gh
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Source: YEN.com.gh
