By George OPARA
A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, Thursday convicted 11 Indian nationals and their merchant vessel, MV Aruna Hulya, for trafficking 31.5kg of cocaine.
Presiding Justice Joseph Aneke gave the verdict after the defendants opted for a plea bargain with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
Spear News Nigeria gathered that the NDLEA had arrested the crew members following the discovery of the consignment hidden in Hatch 3 of the vessel at the GDNL Terminal, Apapa Port, Lagos, on January 2, 2026. The ship had sailed from the Marshall Islands.
Those convicted include the vessel as the first defendant and the following crew members: Captain Sharma Shashi Bhushan, Bharati Manoj Kumar, Nevage Sandesh Suresh, Pandey Prashant, Nuttu Anand, Akash Babu, Nilesh Mukuno Bhalerad, Melethil Insaf Rahman, Barla Chantanya Krishna, Prabhasukhan Singu, and Jai Parkash.
They were arraigned on a two-count charge. All 12 defendants were convicted under Section 25 of the NDLEA Act.
Each crew member was ordered to pay a fine of N100,000. The vessel, MV Aruna Hulya, was directed to pay $5.3m in restitution to the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Three principal officers — Sharma Shashi Bhushan, Nilesh Mukuno Bhalerad, and Melethil Insaf Rahman — must each pay an additional $100,000 in restitution, while the remaining crew members are to pay $50,000 each.
In his judgement, Justice Aneke stated: “After months before the court, the trial judge on Thursday 11th June 2026 delivered his ruling on plea bargain terms filed by the prosecution and defence in the case.
In consequence, all 12 defendants were convicted under Section 25 of the NDLEA Act and sentenced to pay the sum of N100,000 each which is the penalty for the offence under the Act.
Besides, the 1st defendant, which is the vessel, is to pay restitution to the Federal Republic of Nigeria in the sum of $5,300,000 or its equivalent in Naira.
Marwa added: “The NDLEA will not relent. Whether you come by air, land, or sea; whether you are a Nigerian or a foreign national, if you attempt to use our waters as a narcotics highway, you will face the full weight of Nigerian law. Our courts have spoken, and we will continue to give them reason to speak.
The war against drug trafficking is one we are winning, and we intend to keep it that way.”
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