On Wednesday, a Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, let go of Mike Nwalie, a well-known socialite and nightclub owner known as Pretty Mike, after agreeing with his argument that there was no case against him in a drug-related trial.
Justice Ambrose Lewis-Alagoa also let go of the club’s supervisor, Joachim Hillary, saying that the prosecution didn’t have enough evidence to prove their case against the defendants.
The Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) had charged the two with three counts of conspiracy, illegal possession of drugs, and allowing drug activities to take place on club property.
The charges came after the NDLEA raided Pretty Mike’s nightclub in Victoria Island on October 26. The agency said they found 169 cylinders of nitrous oxide (laughing gas) weighing 384.662 kilograms, as well as 200 grams of cannabis sativa.
The prosecution said that the drugs were meant for use at an illegal drug party and tried to connect the defendants to their possession and storage. They also asked for the nightclub to be closed down.
At the end of the prosecution’s case, the defense lawyer, Chikaosolu Ojukwu (SAN), filed a no-case submission. He said that the evidence was weak and did not directly link the defendants to the crimes they were accused of.
He said that suspicion alone couldn’t support a criminal charge and that the prosecution didn’t prove that the defendant owned, controlled, or knew about the drugs.
He said that the legal requirement for a prima facie case had not been met, so the defendants did not need to open their defense.
Justice Lewis-Alagoa agreed with the defense in his decision, saying that the prosecution’s case did not have the strong and convincing evidence needed by law.
The court said that the accusations were, at best, just suspicions and didn’t give the defendants a reason to defend themselves.
After the decision, the court upheld the no-case submission and let both Pretty Mike and Hillary go, effectively ending the criminal proceedings at the preliminary stage.
