An Italian national identified as Mario Maestro was yesterday convicted to 20years in prison over unlawful possession of narcotic drugs and trafficking of narcotic drugs.
The convict, who pleaded guilty before Entebbe Chief Magistrate Mary Kaitesi Kisakye, was awarded a jail sentence of 10years for each of the two counts or alternatively pay a fine of Shs10m for each count.
The Magistrate also ordered for the immediate deportation of the convict after serving the two sentences.
The convict committed the offences on 1 July 2017 at the screening point at Entebbe International Airport where security got him in possession of Italian passport and a red plastic rolling bag which was subjected to screening and it was discovered it had one package wrapped in a polythene bag containing a green substance known as Heroin or cocaine.
The Magistrate told court that though the convict pleaded guilty to the offense and never wasted court’s time, cases of unlawful possession of narcotic drugs and drug trafficking are rampant in court’s jurisdiction and therefore, there is need to penalize the perpetrators before handing the convict a jail term of 10years for each count or pay Shs 10m for each count.
