A High Court in Freetown has sentenced Nigerian citizen Iwuchukwu Ebere Christian to 30 years in prison after finding him guilty of unlawfully possessing 900 grams of cocaine.
The sentence was handed down by Justice Mark Ngegba under Section 8(a) of the National Drugs Control Act of 2008.
Christian was arrested on June 25, 2025, in Lungi, where authorities discovered 46 pellets later confirmed to contain cocaine. Despite initially pleading not guilty, he offered no evidence in his defense, relying solely on his earlier police statement.
During the trial, ASP Joseph Stevens of the Transnational Organized Crime Unit (TOCU) testified that he conducted a laboratory analysis on June 30, 2025, at the request of Detective Inspector Steven Alpha Turay. The tests confirmed the pellets contained cocaine weighing a total of 900 grams.
Justice Ngegba ruled that the prosecution had proven its case beyond a reasonable doubt, establishing that Christian was in possession of cocaine without lawful authority.
Following the verdict, Christian pleaded for leniency, telling the court the drugs were only in transit. He admitted traveling by road from Nigeria to Sierra Leone with plans to deliver the pellets to Ecuador in exchange for a promised payment of USD 5,000.
Defense Counsel C.I. Williams urged the court to consider his client’s foreign nationality, parental responsibilities and caregiving role. However, State Counsel A. Jalloh maintained that the gravity of the offense and the potential reputational harm to Sierra Leone justified a harsh penalty.
In his final ruling, Justice Ngegba dismissed the plea for a lighter sentence and imposed a 30-year jail term, emphasizing the strength of the evidence presented against the convict.
