Sharon Chigwaza, a 33-year-old beautician from Zimbabwe, has been sentenced to 22 years in prison for smuggling 2,910 grams of heroin into India. The sentence was handed down on Wednesday by Ernakulam Additional Sessions VII Judge VPM Sureshbabu, who also imposed a fine of Rs 1.5 lakh under two sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
Chigwaza was found guilty under sections 21 (c) and 23 (c) of the NDPS Act for carrying and trafficking the illicit substance. If she fails to pay the fine, she will face an additional six months of imprisonment for each charge.
The case was investigated by D Pramila, an Intelligence Officer of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in Kochi. Chigwaza claimed that she had agreed to transport the drugs to India to fund her medical treatment in Delhi.
The court, however, focused on the severity of the crime rather than her motives. Special Public Prosecutor for the NCB, Adv Sunil J, pointed out that Chigwaza was carrying nearly 12 times the commercial quantity of heroin.
The minimum sentence for smuggling a commercial quantity of heroin is 10 years, with a maximum of 20 years. The judge took into account her difficult background, as well as the fact that she was a woman, and sentenced her to 11 years for each offense. These sentences will run concurrently, meaning she will serve a total of 11 years in prison.
Chigwaza, according to her statement, had been living as a refugee in South Africa with her parents and two sisters. However, the NCB later discovered that her refugee certificate was fraudulent. On June 19, 2021, she arrived at Kochi airport from Johannesburg, via Doha, aboard a Qatar Airways flight.
As she was preparing to catch a connecting flight to Delhi, airport security became suspicious and detained her. Upon searching her luggage, they discovered the heroin hidden in a secret compartment in her trolley bag, leading to her arrest.
Chigwaza explained that she had suffered multiple miscarriages and was seeking funds for medical treatment. A Nigerian acquaintance, named Ifeanyi, had promised her $2,000 (approximately Rs 1.47 lakh) in exchange for delivering the drugs to a lodge in Delhi.
He allegedly told her that his brother would meet her in Delhi to collect the package and pay her.
This was Chigwaza’s first trip to India, and she took up the offer, believing it would help her financially. In response to the case, Adv Sunil stated that the court’s sentence sent a clear message: drug trafficking is a serious crime, regardless of one’s nationality or circumstances.
The court also acknowledged the time Chigwaza had already spent in detention prior to her conviction, which will be deducted from her sentence.
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