Man acquitted from drug trafficking charge
SANDAKAN: A 33-year-old man escaped the gallows after the High Court here acquitted him of trafficking 304.1 grams of Methamphetamine.
Thien Tze Chao was overjoyed upon hearing the decision made by judge Datuk Mairin Idang @ Martin who acquitted him from a charge under Section 39B of Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, punishable under 39B (a)(1) of the same Act which carries the death punishment if found guilty.
According to the facts of the case, Thien was with his girlfriend in his house at Jalan Fook Hin, Mile 14 here when the police raided his house around 1.20am on April 13, 2016.
After finding nothing illegal in his home, the police then inspected Thien’s pick-up truck and found a package under the driver’s seat.
Thien and his girlfriend were then brought to the police station where they tested positive with Methamphetamine.
The package was sent to the chemist lab which then confirmed that it contained 304.1 grams of Methamphetamine.
During the trial, counsels Dominic Chew Ban Huat and Luke Ressa Balang had successfully raised reasonable doubts that the drugs did not belong to Thien.
The counsels argued that the car keys (original and spare) of the vehicle where the drugs were found were accessible to others, including Thien’s family members.
The credibility of the prosecution witnesses was also questionable as the witnesses also included Thien’s parents and girlfriend.
The trial commenced on August 7, 2017, and the case was prosecuted by deputy public prosecutor Franklin Ganggan Bennet.