A 38-year-old South African woman, Will Jessica Ann, has been sentenced to 25 years imprisonment for smuggling 5.75kg of heroin into Nigeria through the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
Justice Obiora Egwuatu of the Federal High Court, Abuja, gave the verdict on Thursday after Ann pleaded guilty to conspiracy and unlawful importation.
She was arrested on July 6, 2026, by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) while arriving on Qatar Airways flight QR1433 from Doha with her 3-year-old son, who she allegedly used as cover.
Although she wept and begged for mercy, the judge ruled that the law does not respect emotions.
He sentenced her to 15 years on count one and 25 years on count two, to run concurrently.
Justice Egwuatu held that, prior to her guilty plea, the defendant had admitted to committing the offence in her extrajudicial statement.
He added that the law is settled that a conviction follows a plea of guilty.
