Court discharge Pretty Mike after no-case submission was upheld in a drug-related trial...

Justice Ambrose Lewis-Alagoa of the Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, has discharged popular socialite and nightclub owner Mike Nwalie, also known as Pretty Mike, alongside club supervisor Joachim Hillary, after upholding their no-case submission in a drug-related trial.

CBI News reports that the ruling, delivered on Wednesday, brings an end to the prosecution instituted by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), with the court holding that the evidence presented failed to establish a prima facie case requiring the defendants to open a defence.

Pretty Mike, owner of Proxy Lagos nightclub, and Hillary were earlier arraigned on a three-count charge bordering on conspiracy, unlawful possession of hard drugs, and knowingly allowing the use of the club premises for illicit drug activities.

The charges stemmed from an NDLEA raid on the nightclub on October 26, during which the agency said it recovered 169 cylinders of nitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas, weighing 384.662 kilograms, as well as 200 grams of cannabis sativa.

The prosecution alleged the substances were intended for use at an illegal drug party and sought to link the defendants to their possession and storage, also describing the nightclub as an instrumentality of crime and pushing for its forfeiture.

At the close of the prosecution’s case, defence counsel, Chikaosolu Ojukwu (SAN), filed a no-case submission, arguing that the prosecution failed to present credible and admissible evidence directly linking the defendants to the alleged offences.

He maintained that the evidence was weak, inconsistent, and insufficient in law, stressing that suspicion or circumstantial claims without clear proof could not sustain criminal charges.

The defence further argued that ownership, control, or knowledge of the substances by the defendants was not established, falling short of the legal threshold for criminal liability.

Relying on provisions of criminal procedure, counsel submitted that where no prima facie case is disclosed, the court is obligated to uphold a no-case submission and discharge the accused persons.

In his ruling, Justice Alagoa agreed with the defence, holding that the prosecution’s case, at its highest, amounted to mere suspicion and lacked the cogent and compelling evidence required to link the defendants to the alleged drug activities.

Consequently, the court upheld the no-case submission and discharged both Pretty Mike and Hillary without calling on them to enter their defence.