Female drug trafficker loses death appeal

PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal has upheld the death sentence on a Thai woman who was convicted of trafficking cocaine in 80 capsules by swallowing and inserting them into her private part.

In dismissing Chonmanee Laphathanawat’s appeal against her conviction and death penalty, Justice Datuk Mohtarudin Baki, who led a threeman panel, ruled that evidence against her was strong and overwhelming.

Chonmanee, 31, from the Thai province of Rayong, was found guilty and sentenced to death by the Penang High Court last year for trafficking in 689.10g of cocaine between Feb 13 and 16, 2013.

According to the facts of the case, Chonmanee was arrested at Penang International Airport at 5.10pm on Feb 13, 2013, after she was spotted behaving suspiciously at the arrival hall.

Chonmanee had flown to Singapore via Barcelona and on arrival in Singapore, took a flight to Penang where she was arrested.

Authorities at the airport noticed Chonmanee looking uneasy and walking slowly as if she was holding something back. She was then sent to the Penang Hospital for an examination after she told them she had “consumed something”.

Seventy-eight oval-shaped pieces wrapped in plastic were recovered from her excrement over four days and another two capsules, from her private part. – Bernama