An Ile-Ife Magistrates’ Court, on Friday, remanded Ayotunde Ige, 25, and Adefioye Owolabi, 27, in prison custody for allegedly smoking Indian hemp publicly.
The magistrate, Olukunle Owolawi, refused to grant bail for the two smokers, but adjourned the case until June 17 for ruling on the bail application.
Owolawi stated that in the interim, the defendants should be remanded in Ile-Ife prison custody.
Earlier, the prosecutor, Inspector Abdullahi Emmanuel, told the court that the defendants committed the offence on June 6, 2019 around 6:30 p.m. at Ajegunle Street, Ile-Ife.
Emmanuel said that the defendants conspired among themselves to commit felony therein to wit: conduct likely to cause the breach of public peace.
He added that the defendants unlawfully conducted themselves in a manner that breached the public peace by smoking Indian hemp publicly, which caused panic to the people of the area.
According to him, the defendants were in possession of weeds suspected to be Indian hemp, and they could not give a satisfactory account of how they got it.
The prosecutor stated that the offence contravened Sections 249 (d), 430 and 516 of the Criminal Code, Laws of Osun, 2002.
The defendants, however, pleaded not guilty to three-count charge of conspiracy, breach of peace and smoking.
The defence counsel, Mr Bolaji Adewale and Olakumbi Akinlotan, pleaded for the bail of the defendant in most liberal term, pledging that their clients would not jump bail, but would produce substantial sureties.
