Two Africans are on trial in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) after they were arrested by the Police in Dubai with banned substances.
One of the suspects, a 24 year old Cameroonian, was arrested in January this year with 2.6kg of marijuana hidden inside spices in his bag at the Dubai International Airport.
The Dubai Court of First Instance heard this week that the Cameroonian was accosted by the police for a stop and search after airport officers noticed an abnormal thickness inside his bag.
When he asked what was in the bag, he said it had food supplies and spices. But 12 plastic rolls full of marijuana was discovered from the bag during a search.
The Cameroonian further admitted to an officer at the Anti-Narcotics Department in Dubai Police that he had brought the drugs from Cameroon and that a Nigerian worker would have come to receive it.
He explained that a woman in Cameroon asked him to deliver the bag to her brother in Dubai who had sponsored a residence visa for him.
The duo kept in touch on WhatsApp.
The second suspect, a 29-year-old Nigerian, was also arrested as he came to the airport to receive the first defendant.
Dubai Public Prosecution has charged the Cameroonian defendant with smuggling and possessing 2.6kg of marijuana, while the Nigerian defendant has been charged with criminal abetting.
The next hearing will be on September 21 while the defendants remain in police custody.
