MIRI: Eighteen people have been fined RM2,200 each by the Miri Magistrates’ Court after pleading guilty to consuming dangerous drugs in separate cases.
The 18 people, comprising five men and 13 women, were convicted under Section 15(1)(a) of Malaysia’s Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, which makes it an offence to self-administer a dangerous drug.
The court ordered each of them to serve five months in prison if they failed to pay the fine.
One of those convicted was an Indonesian national. The court ordered the person to be referred to the Malaysian Immigration Department after completing the five-month prison sentence as the individual did not have valid travel documents to enter or remain in Malaysia.
Miri District Police Chief, ACP Mohd Farhan Lee Abdullah, said police were stepping up operations against suspected drug abuse, particularly at entertainment centres in the city.
He said police had increasingly detected cases involving a substance referred to as “juice”.
Police urged members of the public to report information on suspected drug-related activities to the Miri District Police Headquarters or the nearest police station.
It said public co-operation was important in helping to uphold the law.
