A woman arrested at the Milimani Law Courts gate while transporting bhang has pleaded with the court to release her, claiming she did not know the package contained the illegal substance.
Elizabeth Njeri appeared before Chief Magistrate Lucas Onyina, where prosecutors alleged that on October 8, 2025, she was found at the court’s checkpoint by National Youth Service (NYS) officers in possession of 50 rolls of bhang weighing 90 grams and valued at Ksh 2,500 an offense under Kenyan law.
Njeri pleaded guilty to being found with the drugs but insisted she was unaware of what she was carrying.
According to her statement, she came across a black nylon paper bag lying on the ground and assumed it contained money. Believing it was her lucky day, she picked it up and placed it in her handbag, only to later discover it held bhang.
She further told the court that despite trying to explain to the arresting officers that she had mistaken the contents for cash, they ignored her explanation.
At one point, the magistrate lightened the tense atmosphere by asking her jokingly whether she used her hands or a machine to pick up the bag, to which she replied that she used her hands.
In a tearful plea, Njeri said she is a single mother and has been unable to locate her special needs child since her arrest.
After considering her explanation, Magistrate Onyina entered a plea of not guilty and ordered the case file to be forwarded to the JKIA Law Courts for allocation of a trial court on October 13, 2025.
Njeri was remanded in custody until October 14, 2025, when she is expected to appear before the JKIA Law Courts for bail and bond determination.
