A FEDERAL High Court in Abuja has sentenced a 38-year-old South African woman, Will Jessica Ann, to 25 years in prison for importing 5.75 kilogrammes of heroin into Nigeria.
Justice Obiora Egwuatu handed down the sentence on Thursday, September 17, 2026, after Ann pleaded guilty to a two-count charge filed by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), bordering on conspiracy and unlawful importation of heroin.
The case arose from Ann’s arrest at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on July 6, 2026, during the inward clearance of passengers aboard Qatar Airways Flight QR1433 from Doha. According to the NDLEA, she had travelled from Cambodia through Doha before arriving in Nigeria.
The anti-narcotics agency said its operatives discovered 14 large blocks of heroin, weighing 5.75kg, concealed in two suitcases. Ann was travelling with her three-year-old son at the time.
The NDLEA said Ann initially denied travelling with checked-in luggage. Investigators, however, established that the baggage tags on the two suitcases containing the drugs corresponded with the claim tags attached to her passport. She subsequently acknowledged ownership of the bags, reportedly telling officers that she had forgotten she had checked them in.
Guilty Plea
Ann was arraigned before the Federal High Court in August and pleaded guilty to the charges.
The first count accused her of conspiring with another South African national, Jan Coenraad De Jager, to unlawfully import the heroin into Nigeria. De Jager was listed as being at large.
The second count concerned the unlawful importation of 5.75kg of heroin.
The prosecution told the court that the case was brought under Sections 14 and 11(a) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act, Cap N30, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
Section 14 provides for a prison term of between 15 and 25 years for conspiracy and related offences under the Act. Section 11(a), which covers the unlawful importation of drugs including heroin, provides for life imprisonment upon conviction.
During the proceedings, Justice Egwuatu noted that Ann had admitted to the offence in an extrajudicial statement before entering her guilty plea. The judge held that a guilty plea amounted to an admission of the offence and consequently proceeded to conviction.
Plea for Leniency
Before sentence was imposed, Ann pleaded with the court for leniency and expressed remorse. She told the court that she did not know the bags contained drugs and promised not to become involved in such an activity again.
“I did not know there was drug in the bags. I have learnt my lessons,” she said, according to reports of the proceedings.
Her lawyer also urged the court to temper justice with mercy, pointing to Ann’s status as a first-time offender and a mother who had no one in Nigeria to care for her young child.
The issue of the child’s welfare had earlier featured in the proceedings. At the August arraignment, the prosecution told the court that Ann’s three-year-old son had remained with her in NDLEA custody and that the agency was interested in handing the child over to the South African authorities. Justice Egwuatu subsequently directed the prosecution to file a formal application concerning the child’s custody.
Concurrent Sentences
In determining the sentence, the judge said he had considered the prosecution’s submission concerning the value of the seized heroin, as well as the defence’s plea and Ann’s status as a first-time offender.
The prosecution had told the court that the estimated street value of heroin was about N18 million per kilogramme. At that valuation, the 5.75kg seized in Ann’s luggage would be worth approximately N103.5 million.
Justice Egwuatu sentenced Ann to 15 years’ imprisonment on the conspiracy count and 25 years on the unlawful-importation count. The two sentences are to run concurrently.
Consequently, although the individual terms total 40 years when added arithmetically, Ann’s effective prison term is 25 years, rather than 40 years. The judge also ordered that the seized heroin be destroyed if Ann does not appeal within the period allowed by law.
Justice Egwuatu said the law could not be influenced by emotions and stressed that “crime does not pay.”
Alleged International Trafficking Link
The case has also drawn attention to the international dimension of the alleged trafficking operation.
According to the NDLEA, intelligence gathered before Ann’s arrest indicated that she was linked to a transnational drug-trafficking organisation operating along a Cambodia-South Africa route. The agency identified De Jager as her husband or partner and said he was based in Cambodia.
The NDLEA subsequently reported that De Jager was arrested in Johannesburg, South Africa, on July 27, 2026, in connection with an alleged attempt to traffic 3.2kg of illicit drugs to Hong Kong. The agency presented the development as part of the wider investigation into the trafficking network allegedly connected to Ann.
The allegation concerning De Jager remains separate from Ann’s conviction in Nigeria, and his status in the Nigerian proceedings was recorded as being at large.
Part of Wider Anti-drug Enforcement
Ann’s conviction comes amid intensified efforts by the NDLEA to disrupt international drug-trafficking networks using Nigeria as a destination or transit point.
The agency has increasingly publicised arrests and prosecutions involving drugs intercepted at Nigeria’s international airports, including consignments concealed in luggage and other forms of concealment.
The NDLEA reported that it secured 974 convictions for drug offences during the first quarter of 2026, including convictions involving major drug-trafficking suspects. The agency has said the prosecution of offenders is part of its broader effort to prevent Nigeria from becoming a “soft landing” for international drug cartels.
