Mwanza Senior Resident Magistrate’s court has sentenced a 42-year-old Kings Nyirenda to 9 years in prison for being found in possession of Cannabis Sativa (Chamba).

Police say Nyirenda was caught at Mwanza Border when he was about to leave the country using a tanker truck registration number RU6659.

Regional prosecution inspector Assistant Superintendent Lewis Makiyi said the convict was busted on 9 July 2022 and with him, he had 229 bags of cannabis weighing 6,923 kilogrammes, in his trial Nyirenda pleaded guilty and in mitigation, he pleaded to the court for leniency saying that he is a breadwinner and the sole provider.

However, the state asked the same court to slap the accused with a harsh sentence arguing such cases are on the rise in the country due to misinformation or interpretation of the law.

Deputy publicist for Mwanza, Hope Kasakula said in passing the sentence, Senior Resident Magistrate Sajda Maiden agreed with the State and sentenced Kings to nine years Imprisonment with Hard Labour saying the sentence should act as a deterrent to other would-be offenders.