A Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi has discharged nightclub owner Pretty Mike and club supervisor Joachim Hillary after ruling that the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) failed to prove a prima facie case against them.
Justice Ambrose Alagoa upheld the defendants’ no-case submission on Wednesday, bringing the drug-related prosecution to an end at the preliminary stage.
The duo had been charged with conspiracy, unlawful possession of hard drugs and allowing illicit drug activity at Pretty Mike’s Proxy Lagos nightclub in Victoria Island, Lagos.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency claimed that during an October 26 raid on the club, officers recovered 169 cylinders of nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas, weighing 384.662 kilograms, as well as 200 grams of cannabis sativa. The agency alleged that the substances were intended for an illegal drug party and also sought forfeiture of the club as an “instrumentality of crime”.
Chikaosolu Ojukwu, who led the defence team, filed a no-case submission, arguing that the prosecution did not present credible or admissible evidence linking his clients directly to the alleged offences.
He said the evidence was weak, inconsistent, and not sufficient in law to require the defendants to open their defence. He also argued that suspicion or circumstantial claims without clear proof could not sustain criminal charges.
The defence further stated that the prosecution failed to prove ownership, control, or knowledge of the substances by the defendants, which they said was necessary to establish criminal responsibility.
In his ruling, Justice Alagoa agreed with the defence, holding that the evidence presented by the prosecution did not meet the minimum legal standard required to proceed with the case.
He therefore upheld the no-case submission and discharged Pretty Mike and Hillary without calling on them to enter their defence.
The case followed a raid by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency on the nightclub in October 2025.
