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A 34-year-old Bahraini man who was found guilty of smuggling crystal meth and amphetamines into the kingdom from Thailand has been sentenced to five years behind bars.
He was also fined BD3,000 by the High Criminal Court which ordered the seizure of the drugs found in his possession.
The defendant denied the charges during his first appearance in court on October 4 but sufficient evidence was presented against him.
“The 34-year-old smuggled in shabu cleverly concealed in small cartons wrapped in aluminium and hidden in women’s handbags,” read the court ruling.
Concealed
“Information received by the Anti-Narcotics Police revealed that the defendant has smuggled in large quantities of shabu concealed in these bags through FedEx.
“These packages are hard to detect and he would sell the majority of the shabu but keep some for his personal use.
“A confidential informant was assigned to get close to the defendant and arranged a sale but the operation failed as the defendant was suspicious and cancelled the meeting.
“However, on August 14 officers witnessed the defendant leaving his home under the influence of drugs and arrested him.”
Court documents also revealed that on searching his residence officers found shabu concealed in plastic bags, sensitive scales and ripped female handbags.
A further search of his vehicle revealed 49 Captagon pills, 181g of shabu and 12.559g of shabu divided into three small bags ready for a sale, as well as a cutter and BD120.
The 34-year-old had prior drug convictions, the court heard.
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