Ngara man who was busted with 75 rolls of bhang and three sachets of 60 grams of the same has pleaded guilty to possession charge saying that he had a life-threatening illness and consuming the weed was helping in suppressing the condition.
From the charge sheet read out in court to Marvin Lucas Gatonye, the court heard that “substance which he was nabbed with was valued at Ksh2,500 an offence which was in contravention of the narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances Act of 1994.”
On the fateful day, police officers from Parklands police station were on foot patrol along Chambers road in Ngara, Nairobi, when they spotted Gatonye from a distance. He looked so suspicious that the police followed him closely before ordering him to stop.
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They restrained him before he escaped and ransacked him and the bhang was found hidden inside his bag.
He was arraigned following his apprehension before Kibera law court senior principal Magistrate Esther Bhoke who challenged Gatonye’s claims of using bhang to treat his serious condition threatening his life.
“Your honour, I am sick. I use the weed to suppress seizures. I do not have the medic’s prescription,” he said.
Gatonye was asked by the magistrate whether he had a prescription of the same from a medical practitioner and he revealed that he was self-medicating without the medic's directive.
Having considered his argument, the court directed that Gatonye be remanded in custody until the social inquiry report is tabled in court in the determination of sentencing.
