Friday, September 18, 2026 - A Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced a 38-year-old
South African woman, Will Jessica Ann, to 25 years in prison for unlawfully
importing 5.75kg of her%in into Nigeria.
Justice Obiora Egwuatu sentenced Ann to 15 years on the
first count and 25 years on the second count, with both sentences running
concurrently, meaning she will serve 25 years in prison.
Ann had pleaded guilty to conspiracy and unlawful
importation of the drüg after she was arrested by the National Drug Law
Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja,
on July 6.
She was arrested during the inward clearance of Qatar
Airways flight QR1433 from Doha while travelling with her three-year-old son.
The NDLEA said two suitcases containing 14 large blocks of
her%in weighing 5.75kg were found after baggage tags on the bags were matched
with claim tags attached to Ann’s passport. She initially denied travelling
with checked-in luggage but later admitted owning the bags, claiming she had
forgotten she checked them in.
Ann expressed remorse in court and said she did not know
there were illicit drügs in the bags. She also promised not to commit such an
offence again.
The judge, while delivering the sentence, said the law was
not influenced by emotions and stated that “crime does not pay.” The
prosecution had urged the court to consider the estimated value of the her%in,
put at about ₦18 million per kilogramme.
The NDLEA had also alleged that Ann was part of a
transnational drüg trafficking organisation operating along the Cambodia-South
Africa route with her husband/partner, Jan Coenraad De Jager. Ann admitted
conspiring with De Jager, who remains at large.
The court further ordered that the seized her%in be
destroyed if Ann does not appeal within the period allowed by law.
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