Lagos Socialite ‘Ariket’ Bags 45-Year Jail Term Over C@caine Tr+fficking to Saudi Arabia
Lagos Socialite ‘Ariket’ Bags 45-Year Jail Term Over C@caine Tr+fficking to Saudi Arabia
Justice Dehinde Dipeolu of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, has sentenced Lagos-based socialite and convicted dr¥g tr+fficker, Funmilola Arike Ogbuaya, popularly known as Ariket, to 45 years in prison for exporting 1.595kg of c@caine to Saudi Arabia.
The court handed her 15 years each on three counts, conspiracy, possession, and unlawful exportation of c@caine. However, the sentences will run concurrently, meaning she will serve an effective 15-year term starting from May 19, 2017, the date of her arrest.
Ogbuaya was found guilty after a trial that stemmed from the arrest of her co-defendant, Odeyemi Omolara (also known as Ariyo Monsurat Olabisi), at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in February 2017.
Omolara reportedly confessed that Ogbuaya supplied the dr¥gs. She had earlier pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 25 years in prison by Justice Hadiza Rabiu Shagari.
During the trial, prosecution witnesses detailed how the operation was carried out. Arresting officer Iyabode Shonibare told the court that Omolara cried out during her arrest, accusing “Arike” of setting her up. Other testimonies also linked Ogbuaya to the dr¥g consignment.
A security guard at Ogbuaya’s residence testified that Omolara spent the night before her arrest at the house and that the suspect personally drove her to the airport. He also revealed that the bag used for the tr+fficking had been delivered earlier by unidentified persons.
In her defence, Ogbuaya admitted knowing Omolara but denied involvement in dr¥g tr+fficking. She claimed she only gave her N10,000 for assistance and was unaware of any dr¥gs, despite dropping her at the airport on the day of the arrest.
Her lawyer, Yakubu Galadima, pleaded for leniency, citing her status as a first-time offender with dependents. But the court ruled in line with the law, upholding her conviction on all counts.
