A Federal High Court sitting in Kano on Friday, sentenced a 20-year-old woman, Faith Joseph, to four years imprisonment for trafficking a 21-year-old woman (name withheld) to Burkina Faso for prostitution.
Joseph, who resides in Panshekara, Mallam Sabo, New Abuja Quarters in Kano, was convicted on a two-count charge of trafficking and illegal entry.
Delivering judgment, Justice M N Yunusa, held that the prosecution had proven its case beyond the reasonable doubt.
“I hereby sentence the defendant to two years’ imprisonment on each count without the option of fine,” the judge held.
Earlier, the Prosecution Counsel from the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), Mr Hassan Nuraddeen, told the court that the defendant committed the offence on July 15, in Kano.
He said Joseph conspired with one Grace James, now at large, to procure the illegal entry of the 21-year-old victim, also of Gaida Panshekara Quarters, Kano, and facilitated her travel from Kano to Burkina Faso through Lagos and Cotonou.
The victim, upon arrival, was engaged in prostitution,” Nuraddeen told the court.
The defendant pleaded guilty to the charge and the prosecutor tendered her confessional statement as evidence.
According to Nuraddeen, the offence contravenes the provisions of Sections 26(1) and 18 of the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition Enforcement and Administration) Act, 2015.
Counsel to the defendant, M. B. Isah, pleaded for leniency, citing her age.
He said that his client was remorseful about her actions.
