PANAJI
A Nigerian national, Ebuka Chiuba Obiekwe, who had been facing multiple criminal cases in Goa including trafficking narcotics and overstaying his visa is directed by a trial court to leave the country within 30 days.
The Fast Track Court in Mapusa convicted and sentenced him to seven months in jail for overstaying his visa and non-renewal of an expired passport. While sentences in both offenses are to run concurrently, the Court set aside the sentence period given that he already served imprisonment from August 23, 2016, to March 8, 2017.
In its order on Tuesday, the court ordered him to depart the country if not involved in any other criminal cases and instructed the Goa Police to ensure his departure within the specified timeframe.
“The accused should make the necessary arrangements to depart the country within 30 days from today if not involved in any other offense,” reads the order by Judicial Magistrate Jude Torex Sequeira.
The accused faced challenges leaving Goa due to bail conditions and the location of the Nigerian Embassy in Mumbai, Maharashtra. As per the case details, his passport had expired on November 4, 2015, and his visa also lapsed on December 19, 2014. He had been released on bail in the first NDPS case on October 17, 2014, and remained out of custody from that date until March 13, 2015, when he was arrested in the second NDPS case.
