KUCHING: A local man was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment and five strokes of the cane by the Magistrate’s Court here today for possessing 5.01 grammes of methamphetamine.
Mohd Shahdina Syarmin Abdul Rahman, 27, from Samariang, pleaded guilty to a charge read before Senior Assistant Registrar Abdurrahman Abrar Jarni.
He was accused of possessing 5.01 grammes of methamphetamine in front of a budget hotel on Jalan Macdougall at around 1 pm on July 8, 2024, under Section 12(2) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, punishable under Section 39A(1) of the same Act.
If found guilty, the offence carries a prison term of not less than two years and not exceeding five years, and a whipping sentence of not less than three strokes and not more than nine strokes.
According to case facts, a team of police officers from the Kuching District Narcotics Criminal Investigation Department arrested the suspect in front of the hotel. A search revealed two transparent packets containing 23 small packets of crystal-like substances in the suspect’s trouser pocket.
The exhibits were sent to the Malaysian Chemistry Department (Jabatan Kimia Malaysia, JIM), and analysis confirmed they were methamphetamine weighing 5.01 grammes.
The case was prosecuted by Deputy Public Prosecutor Chuah Kai Sheng, while the accused was unrepresented.
