A music producer, Ola Adenekan Kabiru, who allegedly stuffed a gas cylinder with a large quantity of dried leaves suspected to be marijuana and attempted to enter Togo with the contraband, is facing trial at the Ho Circuit Court.
The court, presided by Mrs Priscilla Dikro Ofori, last Wednesday heard that the accused, 26, craftily cut open the base of the 28 kilogramme cylinder, and filled it with the dried leaves and resealed it.
He sprayed the cylinder all over again to give it a new look, the court was told.
According to the prosecution, Kabiru was transporting the stuff he procured from Dzemeni in the South Dayi District to Nigeria.
However, accused ran out of luck upon reaching the border town of Aflao, where members of the South Ketu Municipal Assembly Revenue Mobilisation Task Force assisted the police to arrest him.
According to the prosecution, Kabiru had succeeded in transporting marijuana across the same frontier a number of times in the past, with the same modus operandi to outwit the security agencies.
His plea was not taken, and the court remanded him in prison custody to appear again on December 19.
Meanwhile, the Volta Regional Police Command has warned that those who engage in narcotic business in the region would suffer swift and ruthless consequences.
“The police are highly vigilant in the fight against the activities of narcotic dealers and will stop at nothing in grabbing the culprits,” a statement from the Police Command said.
It entreated law-abiding citizens to provide viable information on drug dealers to the police for prompt action.
FROM ALBERTO MARIO NORETTI, HO
