Man ordered to defend cannabis trafficking charge

KOTA KINABALU: A High Court here ordered a self-employed man to enter his defence on a charge of trafficking in 285.18 grams of cannabis.

Justice Datuk Ismail Brahim made the order on Vinod Kumar, 43, after ruling that the prosecution had established a prima facie case against him.

In his reserved ruling, the judge held among others that after considering the submissions of the parties, the court found that the prosecution had proven a prima facie case at the end of the prosecution stage.

The judge further ruled that for this case, he also found that there was evidence of actual or direct possession of the drugs and in the circumstances, the judge had to rely on the presumption of trafficking.

The prosecution had called six witnesses to testify against Vinod, who was represented by counsel Datuk Ram Singh.

The court fixed July 1 and 2 for Vinod to answer his defence.

Vinod was accused of trafficking in the cannabis at the roadside in front of a tyre shop at Jalan Andus in Papar at 12.15am on February 27, 2020.

The alleged offence was under Section 39B (1) (a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, punishable under Section 39B (2) of the same Act. Vinod will be calling two witnesses, including himself to testify for his defence.

In an unrelated case, a Magistrate’s Court here fined a man RM2,000, in default, two months’ jail for gambling in a public place.

Magistrate Lovely Natasha Charles imposed the fine on Ekhmal Shazrie Sabrie, 21, after he pleaded guilty to a charge under Section 7 (2) of the Common Gaming House Act 1953.

The offence carries a fine of up to RM5,000 or a jail term of up to six months, or both, upon conviction.

Ekhmal was arrested for committing the offence at Jalan Sulaman on Nov 10, 2023.