KUCHING: An Indonesian man was jailed for two years by the Magistrates’ Court here today for possessing 24.89 grammes of methamphetamine.
Magistrate Nursyaheeqa Nazwa Radzali sentenced Liu Bui Min, 50, after he pleaded guilty to the charge under Section 12(2) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 and punishable under Section 39A(1) of the same Act.
The court ordered the two-year jail term to take effect from today.
Under Section 39A(1) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, an offender convicted of the offence may be jailed between two and five years and whipped between three and nine strokes.
However, no whipping was imposed pursuant to Section 289(c) of the Criminal Procedure Code, which provides that a male offender considered by the court to be more than 50 years old would not be whipped.
Liu was found in possession of 24.89 grammes of methamphetamine at about 11.30 pm on May 8 in the first room of a house near Jalan Sin Pa, off Jalan Matang here.
Police detained Liu in the house after suspecting him of abusing drug.
A search of a small table in the room, conducted in Liu’s presence, uncovered a transparent plastic container with a black lid containing several packets of suspected methamphetamine.
The seized items included a transparent plastic packet containing crystal-like substances suspected to be methamphetamine as well as another transparent packet containing eight smaller packets of similar substances.
The seized drugs were sent to the Chemistry Department Malaysia for analysis on May 20, with the chemical report later confirming that the exhibit contained 24.89 grammes of methamphetamine.
The case was prosecuted by Deputy Public Prosecutor Muhammad Aidil Akmal Sharidan while the accused was unrepresented.
