Two Brazilian women have been sentenced to 10 years in prison each for illegal drug trafficking, the Justice Ministry of Ethiopia said on Friday.
Addis Ababa airport police detained the two women on separate occasions after finding large chunks of cocaine hidden in their luggage.
The ministry of justice in a statement said the two Brazilians, named Elda Regina Santos and Nadira Gabriela, were caught with illicit drugs at Addis Ababa airport on separate occasions.
Elda, who was traveling from Brazil to South Africa via Addis Ababa, was arrested after police found 1,070 pellets of cocaine that weighed 23.7 kilograms hidden in her luggage on Oct 6, 2022.
Federal prosecutors charged her with illegal drug trafficking in the Federal High Court, Lideta Division’s first cross-border Crimes bench. The defendant pleaded guilty to the charges read to her at the court.
The High court in Addis Ababa sentenced the defendant to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of $380.
Likewise, the same court in Addis Ababa gave the other Brazilian woman Nadira a 10-year jail time after she was found guilty of illicit drug trafficking charges.
She was caught with 513 pellets of cocaine that weighed 14 kilograms during a search on passengers that flew in at Addis Ababa airport from Sao Paulo on August 30, 2022.
The court also slapped Nadira, who was in transit to South Africa, with a $380 fine.
MG/abj/APA