Lagos Dispatch Rider Receives Seven-Year Sentence for Tramadol Trafficking

A Federal High Court in Lagos has sentenced a 33-year-old dispatch rider, Yahaya Nuru, to a total of seven years in prison for the illegal trafficking of significant amounts of tramadol and other restricted drugs.

Justice Musa Kakaki announced the decision on Wednesday, January 14, 2026, after Nuru entered a guilty plea to a four-count indictment brought forth by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).

During the arraignment, prosecutor Peter Ekuri informed the court that Nuru, along with accomplices who are still unapprehended, perpetrated the offenses in November 2025 at No. 6 Ashogbon Street, Lagos Island.

“Nuru collaborated with Abdulrazak and Chukwu Emmanuel Emeka, who are presently at large, to engage in illegal dealings involving controlled substances,” Ekuri stated.

He further revealed that Nuru was apprehended with 4.12 kilograms of tramadol hydrochloride, 40 milliliters of tramadol hydrochloride injection, one liter of diazepam injection, and 1.04 liters of tramadol hydrochloride injection, which he planned to deliver to various customers.

As per the prosecutor, the infractions violated Sections 20(1)(a) and 11(c), and are punishable under Section 20(2)(a) of the NDLEA Act, Cap N30, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.

Following Nuru's guilty plea, Ekuri urged the court to impose a conviction and sentence accordingly. “Considering Nuru’s admission of guilt, the presented facts, and the provided evidence, we ask the court to proceed under Section 247(2) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015,” he remarked.

In a plea for leniency, the defense counsel requested that the court “temper justice with mercy,” highlighting that Nuru was a first-time offender who expedited the legal process through his guilty plea.

When pronouncing the sentence, Justice Kakaki remarked that he had taken into account the defendant's allocutus and the fact that Nuru was a first-time offender.

“The defendant is hereby sentenced to four years, five months, one month, and three years in prison for counts one, two, three, and four, respectively,” the judge decreed.

Additionally, the court mandated Nuru to pay fines of N300,000, N30,000, N50,000, and N200,000 for the respective charges as alternatives to imprisonment.

Justice Kakaki also stipulated that “the sentences and fine options shall run concurrently.”