By A Correspondent | A 36-year-old Zimbabwean woman died after receiving her a fatal dose of nicotine from a herbalist in Nottingham.

The herbalist has been sentenced to 2 years in prison.

Sophie Jekecha had been unwell for several weeks and complained of stomach pains and it was arranged for Lyndon Nindi, who offered traditional herbal remedies to the Zimbabwean community, to visit her at her home in Aspley.

The 49-year-old, of Kinross Drive in Newcastle, who also worked as a care worker, had attended the house in Aspley Lane under a pre-arranged appointment to carry out his treatment.

During the ritual he conducted, Nindi poured snuff (ground tobacco) in his palm and held it to her nose to inhale as well as putting snuff in a glass of water for her to drink. The intention was to make her vomit.

Part-way through, she became dizzy and needed to lie down. She then became increasingly distressed stating that she could not breathe.

At this point, Nindi called someone to seek advice and then applied more snuff to her body but she became more unwell and then unresponsive.

An ambulance was called but despite paramedics attempts to resuscitate her, she was pronounced dead shortly after the incident at around 7pm on 16 February 2020.

Officers from Nottinghamshire Police were called and arrested Nindi on suspicion of manslaughter at the scene.

During their investigation, they found that Ms Jekecha had died as a result of nicotine poisoning and that she had an undiagnosed heart condition which meant that she would be unlikely to survive a toxic challenge such as nicotine ingestion.

Nindi was sentenced at Nottingham Crown Court today (Friday 23 April) having previously pleaded guilty to manslaughter and administering a noxious substance (namely nicotine).

Detective Inspector Rebecca Hodgman said: “This is a tragic case which highlights the dangers of extreme herbal remedies.”Ms Jekecha leaves behind an 18-year-old daughter who is now being cared for by other family members.

“Our thoughts are with the family and friends at this time and we’re grateful to them for working with us during this difficult and complex investigation.”