By Fatima Kpaka
Kambia District, Sierra Leone — 4 February 2026 The Port Loko Resident High Court Judge covering the Kambia Judicial District, Honourable Justice Sahr Elogima Kekura, has sentenced Mohamed Yillah to sixty (60) years’ imprisonment for unlawful possession and keeping of prohibited drugs without lawful authority.
Yillah was among three defendants arraigned before the High Court on fifteen counts, including unlawful possession, selling, and keeping of prohibited drugs. The offences contravened Sections 8(a) and 7(c) of the National Drugs Control Act, 2008 (Act No. 10 of 2008) and Regulation 15 of the Drugs and Substance Abuse, Public Emergency Regulations, 2024.
According to the particulars of offence, on 8 November 2025 at Bamoi Luma, Magbema Chiefdom, Kambia District, Yillah was found selling 17.5 grams of Cannabis Sativa without lawful authority. He was also discovered unlawfully keeping a black rubber bucket containing a loose quantity of dried cannabis leaves.
On the same day and at the same location:
- Foday Ali Kamara, the second defendant, was found in possession of 294.5 grams of Cannabis Sativa.
- Ibrahim Kamara, the third defendant, was caught selling 36.5 grams of Cannabis Sativa.
Court Ruling
In his judgment, Justice Kekura stressed that rampant drug abuse has caused serious public health harm to Sierra Leone’s youth and contributed to social breakdown.
Following Yillah’s guilty plea to six counts, the Court considered his allocutus and plea in mitigation. He was sentenced as follows:
- Counts 1, 2, and 3: Five (5) years each.
- Counts 7, 8, and 9: Fifteen (15) years each.
The sentences will run concurrently, totaling 60 years’ imprisonment.
Meanwhile, the second defendant, Foday Ali Kamara, pleaded guilty to count ten and received a sentence of five (5) years’ imprisonment.
The matter has been adjourned to February 4, 2026, for proceedings on the remaining counts to which the defendants have not yet entered a plea.