A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has sentenced a 25-year-old bricklayer, Olamilekan Idowu, to two years’ imprisonment for unlawful possession and dealing in 48 kilograms of cannabis sativa, commonly known as marijuana.
Idowu was convicted on Tuesday after pleading guilty to a one-count charge filed against him by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in case number FHC/L/496c/2025.
According to the NDLEA prosecutor, Julian Negedu, the convict was arrested on May 24, 2024, in the Ibeju-Lekki area of Lagos State while in possession of the prohibited substance. His actions, Negedu told the court, contravened Section 11(c) of the NDLEA Act, Cap N30, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
Following his guilty plea, the prosecution urged the court to convict and sentence Idowu in line with the provisions of the law and based on the exhibits tendered.
However, defence counsel, O. Ogunleye, pleaded for leniency in sentencing, urging the court to consider the convict’s early guilty plea and expression of remorse. She appealed for a non-custodial sentence, stating that her client had promised not to return to crime.
In his judgment, Justice Ibrahim Kala sentenced Idowu to two years in prison but gave him an option of a ₦500,000 fine. The court also ordered the convict to perform 60 days of community service as part of the punishment.
The charge against the convict read:
“That you, Olamilekan Idowu, Male, 25 years old, on or about the 24th May, 2025, at Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos State, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, without lawful authority dealt in 48 kilograms of Cannabis Sativa, a narcotic drug similar to cocaine, heroin and LSD, and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under section 11(c) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act Cap N30 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
