A Federal High Court sitting in Asaba, Delta State, has sentenced a 38-year-old man, Samuel Ufor Papa, to 12 years’ imprisonment for human trafficking.

Papa was convicted on three counts bordering on facilitating the trafficking of 20-year-old Cynthia Ude to Mali.

After Justice Toyin Adegoke pronounced the sentence on Tuesday, the convict, who is on bail from the Benin zonal office of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons for a previous offence, broke down in tears moved out of.

Justice Adegoke held that the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt on count one of facilitating how the victim left Nigeria.

She also found the convict guilty of facilitating foreign travel by the victim for prostitution.

“From the totality of evidence adduced by the prosecution, I hold the view that the convict is guilty of counts 1 and 2 and is hereby sentenced to five years for count 1 and seven years’ imprisonment for count 2. Both sentences are to run concurrently,” Justice Adegoke stated.

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The defence counsel, O. S. Odenigbo, pleaded for leniency, adding that the convict was a first time offender.

He said Papa had not seen his wife, who was pregnant and had given birth, since 2017 when he was apprehended.

The NAPTIP counsel, Victoria Oburu, said, “The case was filed in 2018 and it has been a fast one, all thanks to the presiding judge, who was very diligent at finding the convict guilty of human trafficking.”