An Eldoret court sentenced Geoffrey Lingori to 12 months in prison after he admitted cannabis offences involving his Malel farm.[1][2]

The sentence

Geoffrey Lingori, 58, was sentenced to 12 months in prison without the option of paying a fine after admitting cannabis offences involving 34 kg of the drug.[1] Senior Resident Magistrate Beatrice Toroitich sentenced him under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.[1] He had pleaded guilty to possessing cannabis before Principal Magistrate Kimani Mukabi.[1][2]

The farm

Directorate of Criminal Investigations detectives raided Lingori’s land in the Malel area of Kapseret Sub-County on 15 August 2026 after receiving a tip-off and found him cultivating 34,000 g of cannabis.[1][2] The agency valued the crop at Sh1.032 million, and the charge sheet said it covered a quarter acre of his small parcel in Malel village.[2] Lingori, who holds a mechanics certificate from the Rift Valley Technical Training Institute in Eldoret, also faced a separate charge of trafficking 50 g of cannabis valued at Sh1,500.[1][2] At a hearing on 7 September he told the court the bhang farm was his main source of income, while at sentencing he said he grew and used the crop for joint pain on what he said was a government hospital doctor’s advice.[1][2]

Senior Resident Magistrate Beatrice Toroitich sentenced 58-year-old Geoffrey Lingori to 12 months in prison without the option of a fine on 21 October 2026.[1]