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A diamond miner and a trader were both sentenced to lengthy prison terms by the Kenema High Court for possession of the prohibited drug Kush, in a ruling that underscores the judiciary’s strong stance against drug-related offences in the region.
Lahai Sannoh, a 45-year-old diamond miner from Konia Kpidima Village in Lower Bambara Chiefdom, and Mariama Kebbie, a 45-year-old trader from Dauda Town in Kenema, were convicted under Section 8(a) of the National Drugs Control Act of 2008 (Act No. 10 of 2008). Both individuals were found guilty of possessing Kush, a drug that has been banned under national law.
The cases were presided over by His Lordship Hon. Justice Abdul Sheriff, who sentenced Sannoh to seven years in prison after he was found in possession of fourteen wraps of dried leaves suspected to be Kush. This discovery was made on November 14, 2025.
Sannoh pleaded guilty to the charge and, through his lawyer, Patrick Kamara of the Legal Aid Board in Kenema, appealed for mercy. In delivering the sentence, Justice Sheriff took into account Sannoh’s guilty plea and the mitigating factors, ordering that the illicit substance be publicly destroyed.
In a related case, Mariama Kebbie was sentenced to six years’ imprisonment after she was found with forty wraps of dried leaves believed to be Kush on November 6, 2025, at Dauda Town in Kenema. Kebbie also pleaded guilty, and her defence counsel informed the court that she was a caregiver with young children.
Kebbie claimed that the drugs had been entrusted to her for safekeeping without her knowledge that they were illegal. Despite this defence, Justice Sheriff imposed a six-year prison sentence and ordered that the seized drug also be destroyed in public view.
The cases were prosecuted by Andrew F. Kamara, State Counsel and Customary Law Officer in Kenema. This ruling notably highlights the increasing efforts by authorities to combat the spread and use of Kush in Kenema and its surrounding communities.
