Two men were arraigned before Mombasa Law Court for allegedly peddling illicit drugs and trafficking cocaine worth Sh3,965,723.
Hilton Gocho Chopeta and Mohamed Jabir Ali appeared before Senior Resident Magistrate David Odhiambo and denied charges of conspiracy to trafficking narcotic drugs and trafficking in cocaine.
In the first count, the two were jointly charged with conspiracy to traffic narcotic drugs, contrary to Section 4(b)(4) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Control) Act No. 4 of 1994, as amended by the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Control) (Amendment) Act, 2022.
The prosecution alleged that between July 15 and 16, 2026, the duo, jointly with others not before court, conspired to traffic cocaine in Mombasa County.
Chopeta and Ali were separately charged with trafficking in narcotic drugs, contrary to Section 4(a)(ii) of the same Act. Chopeta allegedly trafficked 734.9528 grams of cocaine valued at Sh2,939,811, while Ali allegedly trafficked 256.478 grams valued at Sh1,025,912 by storing the drug.
Principal Prosecution Counsel Barbara Sombo opposed their release on bond, arguing that the accused persons were flight risks facing serious offences that attract severe penalties.
Her application was supported by an affidavit sworn by the investigating officer, detailing the circumstances of the duo’s arrest on July 15, 2026, at about 10 am.
The court heard that Chopeta was arrested at the barrier of Moi International Airport as he allegedly attempted to travel to Dubai. He reportedly expelled 15 pellets of cocaine at the scene before being rushed to Port Reitz Hospital, where he expelled a further 29 pellets, bringing the total to 44.
The investigator told the court that Ali was arrested at about 12:30am on July 16, 2026, while crossing the Likoni ferry channel towards Mombasa Island. He allegedly led detectives to his house in Bombolulu, where he picked keys before directing them to another house in the Bamburi Fisheries area, where 16 more pellets were recovered.
The court further heard that the drugs were weighed and sampled by a government analyst, who confirmed they were cocaine, and that Ali has a similar case pending before another court.
Investigations are ongoing, including cyber analysis of evidence recovered from the two suspects.
Hon. Odhiambo ordered a pre-bail report and directed that Chopeta and Ali remain in custody until August 5, 2026, when the matter will be mentioned again.
By Ramadhan Nassib
