By Fatima Kpaka
KONO – Justice Santigie Ibrahim Sorie Bangura of the High Court in Kono has sentenced businessman Kefala Mansaray to fifteen years imprisonment after finding him guilty of possessing prohibited drugs, commonly known as kush.
Mansaray was arraigned on a single count of unlawful possession, contrary to Section 8(a) of the National Drugs Control Act 2008.
According to the indictment, on 5 November 2025, at the Kono Judicial District in Sierra Leone’s Eastern Province, the accused was found with thirty wraps of kush.
During proceedings, State Prosecutor Charles Foday Sesay Esq informed the court that Mansaray had no prior criminal record. Defence counsel Alpha Osman Kamara Esq, in his plea for mitigation, argued that the convict was a first-time offender and a young man with potential to reform. He urged the court to impose a minimum sentence.
In his ruling, Justice Bangura acknowledged the plea in mitigation and the absence of prior convictions. However, he expressed concern over the growing prevalence of drug-related offences, stressing that such crimes continue to overwhelm the courts and negatively affect Sierra Leone’s youth.
“The judiciary must take a firm stance against these offences,” Justice Bangura declared.
Consequently, he sentenced Mansaray to fifteen years imprisonment and ordered the destruction of the seized drugs.