Magistrate Adeola Olatunbosun on Wednesday ordered that five individuals charged with carrying Indian hemp and two bags of phoney foreign currencies be held in Lagos police custody until legal counsel from the Directorate of Public Prosecutions is available.
Francis Omwukei, 26, Kingsley Ude, 33; Umar Idris, 37; Eyo, 27; and Bright Ahamefula, 26, were hauled before a Yaba Magistrates’ Court on a two-count charge of possession of Indian hemp and phoney foreign currencies in pounds sterling and US dollars.
The defendants were arrested on August 9, 2023, in White Sand, Ijora, Lagos State, according to the prosecutor, Rita Momoh.
According to Momoh, the defendants were captured with drugs thought to be Indian hemp and exhibited them in public, an act that might lead to a breach of the peace.
She further stated that the offence violates and is punished under Sections 329 and 442 of the Lagos State Criminal Laws of Nigeria.
The charge stated, in part, “That you, Francis Omwukei, Kingsley Ude, Umar Idris, Eyo, and Bright Ahamefula, on August 9, 2023, at White Sand, Ijora, in Lagos, in the Lagos State Magisterial District, unlawfully had in your possession leaves suspected to be Indian hemp and two bags containing fake US Dollar currency and pounds sterling currency, and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 329 of the Constitution.
In the absence of a remand warrant, the court ordered that the defendants be held in police custody for seven days while the police duplicate and transmit the case to the DPP for legal guidance.
Olatunbosun postponed the case to August 23, 2023, to await DPP advice.
