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A Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, has sentenced a serial drug trafficker, Solomon Adegbite, to 15 years’ imprisonment without an option of a fine for trafficking 1.30 kilogrammes of Tramadol 225 mg, a prohibited narcotic.
According to the first count of the charge, Adegbite was arrested on July 22, 2025, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, during the outward clearance of passengers on a Royal Air Maroc flight bound for Italy via Casablanca, Morocco. The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) alleged that he knowingly possessed 1.30kg of Tramadol, which he had concealed inside a thick winter jacket to evade airport security screening.
Adegbite, 41, a Nigerian resident in Italy, has been arrested three times for drug-related offences, including in 2024.
The court, presided over by Justice Musa Kakaki, convicted Adegbite on a 15-count charge filed by the NDLEA after he pleaded guilty. The defendant was arraigned in February 2026 and remanded in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Service pending the review of facts.
Although the case suffered delays due to unready exhibits, it resumed on March 16, 2026. At the hearing, NDLEA operative Okey Emmanuel reviewed the facts and tendered relevant exhibits. The prosecutor, Juliana Imaobong Iroabuchi, urged the court to convict Adegbite based on his guilty plea and the evidence presented.
At the sentencing hearing, defence counsel Augustine Nwagu pleaded for leniency, describing Adegbite as remorseful with several dependants relying on him, and requested an option of fine. However, the NDLEA strongly opposed the plea, noting that Adegbite was a repeat offender and that granting a fine would send the wrong message to society.
Justice Kakaki sentenced Adegbite across 13 of the 15 counts, with sentences running as pronounced: 15 years each on counts 1–6, 10 years on count 7, 4 years each on counts 8–12, and 10 years on count 15. The court also ordered the forfeiture of several items to the Federal Government, including Adegbite’s Italian residence permit, Nigerian international passport, a Samsung Galaxy A22 phone, and bank accounts linked to Aderevico Pharmacy.
The NDLEA further alleged that Adegbite attempted to manipulate his travel documents during his third arrest by exchanging a valid Italian residence permit with an expired one.
The offence is punishable under Sections 11(d) and 20(a)(c) of the NDLEA Act, Cap N30, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
