Published: Tuesday November 20, 2012 MYT 5:36:00 PM

Nigerian woman gets 12 years in prison for drugs

SHAH ALAM: The High Court here sentenced a Nigerian woman to 12 years in prison after she pleaded guilty to possessing 2.236kg of methamphetamine at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), in February last year.

Judge Datuk Abdul Rahman Sebli ordered Okpaladim Tina Ovoke, 31, to serve the sentence from the date of her arrest, Feb 17, 2011.

In his judgement, Abdul Rahman said the sentence took into consideration the amount of drugs involved, the frequency of such cases, which could not be taken lightly and to safeguard the public.

Tina committed the offence at the Level 3 baggage claim area of the airport and was initially charged under Section 39B(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 which carries the mandatory death sentence upon conviction.

The prosecution later offered her an alternative charge under Section 39A (2) of the same Act, which is punishable between five years and life imprisonment.

Deputy public prosecutor Hafizza Sauni prosecuted while lawyer Suzanawati Ismail represented Tina.

Tina, who was pregnant at the time of her arrest, has a six-year-old daughter in Nigeria and a one-year-old toddler whom she gave birth to in prison. - Bernama

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