Man sent to the gallows for drug trafficking

KUALA LUMPUR: A mother could not hold back her tears at the High Court here when her son Hari Singh Kanda was sentenced to death yesterday for trafficking in 32.3g of heroin and 18.1g of monoacetylmorphine last year.

The mother, who sat at the public gallery, was calm when Judicial Commissioner Datuk Mohamad Shariff Abu Samah read out his judgment after hearing submissions from the prosecution and defence.

However, the woman in her 50s was in tears when Shariff meted out the sentence against the 25-year-old property agent after finding him guilty of the offence.

Hari Singh, clad in a grey shirt, was charged under Section 39(B)(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, which carries the death penalty upon conviction.

Shariff ruled that the accused had failed to raise a reasonable doubt in the prosecution’s case.

“I am satisfied that the testimonies of 10 prosecution witnesses are true.

“I do not believe that the accused was a victim and that he was framed by the police,” he said.

Shariff added that the accused held a red plastic bag which contained the drugs.

“The police seized the red plastic bag from his right hand,” he said.

Hari Singh was represented by lawyers Datuk Geethan Ram Vincent and Datuk Rajpal Singh.

The court allowed a stay of execution pending appeal to the Court of Appeal.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Ahmad Nazneen Zulkifli prosecuted.