An Indian court has sentenced a Nigerian national, Christian Arinze, to 20 years’ imprisonment after finding him guilty of trafficking illicit drugs into the country.
According to the agency, John was arrested on September 3, 2021, after arriving at Ahmedabad Airport on a flight from Dubai with about 2.75 kilograms of heroin.
The suspect was reportedly intercepted by operatives of the Narcotics Control Bureau, who discovered the drugs during a search at the airport.
Following investigations and trial, the Special Court for Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances cases in Ahmedabad sentenced the two foreigners to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 200,000 each.
In a post on X on Tuesday, the bureau said, “The Additional District and Sessions Court, Ahmedabad, has sentenced Hanchabila John, a Zambian national, and Christian Arinze, a Nigerian national, to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment, along with a fine of Rs 2 lakh each.
“The case relates to the seizure of 2.757 kilograms of heroin at Ahmedabad Airport in September 2021, which led to the arrest of the two convicts.”
The agency also urged citizens to report narcotics-related activities through the MANAS helpline, assuring that the identities of informants would remain confidential.
Arinze’s conviction comes less than 72 hours after 93 Nigerians were arrested in Ghana over alleged involvement in fraud and human trafficking.
Earlier, about 43 other Nigerians were detained in Mozambique in circumstances the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission described as potentially xenophobic, noting that they were not formally charged with any crimes.
By: Uthman Salami
