A member of the Akasha Organization was on Friday sentenced to 23 years in jail by a U.S court.
Ibrahim Akasha was jailed by U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero in Manhattan federal court after pleading guilty to trafficking heroin and methamphetamine among other crimes.
The Akasha brother’s lawyer Dawn Cardi urged the court to hand her client a leaner sentence because he played a lesser role in the organization.
Cardi argued that Ibrahim was only 10 years of age when his father died and his brother, Baktash Akasha took over as leader of the organization.
She asked the court to sentence her client to 10 years behind bars.
Ibrahim, now 31, on his part apologized to families affected by his actions.
“I would like to take the time to apologize to the families who were destroyed due to my dealings in drugs,” he told the court as he pleaded with Marrero to show him “mercy” so that he could return to his three children.
After the sentencing, Ibrahim’s lawyer said, “I thought the sentence was outrageous and totally unwarranted given the role that this young man played in this case.”
The Akasha brothers were arrested in November 2014 in Mombasa following a successful U.S led sting operation.
Authorities posing as drug traffickers said the brothers provided them with 99 kilograms of heroin and two kilograms of methamphetamine.
The Akasha brothers pleaded guilty in 2018. Baktash has since been sentenced to 25 years in jail.
Also arrested in connection with the drug scheme was a Pakistani, Gulam Hussein and an Indian identified as Vijaygiri Goswami.
Muhammad Asif Hafeez, was also arrested in London in August 2017.
Email your news TIPS to Editor@kahawatungu.com or WhatsApp +254707482874. You can also find us on Telegram through www.t.me/kahawatungu
Email your news TIPS to Editor@Kahawatungu.com — this is our only official communication channel
