A Tanzanian court has sentenced a man to 28 years in prison after convicting him of trafficking 268.5 kilograms of heroin, judicial officials said.
The Economic and Corruption Crimes Division of the High Court on Thursday found Isso Lomward Lupembe guilty of participating in the trafficking of narcotics.
He was the first of three defendants charged in the case, which was reportedly one of the country’s largest recorded drug seizures.
Reading the judgment, Judge Otaru Joachimu said the court had taken into account the five years and nine months Lupembe had spent in pre-trial detention since his arrest.
As a result, he will serve the remaining 22 years and three months of his sentence.
In a separate ruling, the court acquitted co-accused Alistair Amon Mbele after prosecutors failed to prove the case against him beyond a reasonable doubt.
The case, registered as Economic Crimes Case No. ECO 36/2020 involved three suspects.
The remaining defendant, David Kanayo Chukwu, a Nigerian national, has denied the charges, and his trial is continuing, the court said.
Prosecutors Elizabeth Muhangwa and Phoibe Magili represented the state in the proceedings.
According to the charge sheet, the suspects were arrested on April 15, 2020, in the Mbezi Kibanda cha Mkaa area of Dar es Salaam by officers from the Drug Control and Enforcement Authority (DCEA), accused of trafficking 268.5 kilograms of heroin.
The court adjourned the case to Feb. 23, 2026, when proceedings against the remaining defendant are expected to continue.