A Qatar based-Nigerian, Perrah Livinus, a.k.a Nnakaihe Ikechukwu Livinus, has been ordered to be remanded in the Nigerian Drugs Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA’s custody till Friday, pending his trial.
Livinus was arraigned before a Federal High Court, sitting in Lagos on Monday for allegedly bringing 600kg of heroine into the country illegally.
Arraigning the defendant on a count charge of unlawful importation of the said banned drug, the prosecutor, Juliana Imaobong-Iraobuchi, told the court that the 42 years old defendant commited the offence on May 25, 2021.
To smuggle the drug, the prosecutor told the court that the defendant concealed them in some designer buttons of some female clothes.
The prosecutor also told the court that the defendant, in his bid to commit the illegal act, illegally acquired Ghanaian International passport, with the name Pepprah Livinus.
The prosecutor told the court that the offence committed by the defendant is contrary to and punishable under section 11 (a) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act Cap N, 30 Laws of the Federation cf Nigeria 2004.
The defendant denied the allegation and pleaded not guilty to the charge.
Following his not guilty plea, the prosecutor asked the court for a trial date and also urged the court to remand the defendant till the determination of the charge against him.
However, the defendant’s lawyer, Chief Lilian Omotunde, while not opposing the trial date as requested by the prosecutor, told the court that she has filed her client’s bail application and same has been served on the prosecution.
Upon taking arguments on the bail application from both parties, Justice Lewis Allagoa ordered that the defendant be remanded in NDLEA’s custody till Friday, when ruling will be delivered on the application.
The charge brought against the defendant reads: “that you Perrah Livinus A.K.A Nnakaihe Ikechukwu Livinus, Male, Adult, 42 years old, a citizen of Nigeria but illegally acquired a Ghanaian Passport which you travelled with, and one Samson your friend, Male, Adult who lives in Qatar (now at large) on or about the 25th day of May, 2021 during the inward clearance of passengers on Qatar Airways from Doha, Qatar at the ‘E’ Arrival Hall of the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Ikeja Lagos within the jurisdiction of this Qatar to Nigeria, concealed in some designer buttons of some female clothes inside and without lawful authority imported 600 Grams of Heroin from your luggage and you thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under section 11 (a) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act Cap N, 30 Laws of the Federation cf Nigeria 2004”.
