A Sri Lankan expatriate, found guilty of selling methamphetamine, had earlier searched the Internet to find out what the penalties were for drug-related crimes under Bahraini law, a court heard.
The 25-year-old man admitted to selling meth for only 800fils of profit per sale, as well as using meth and morphine for recreational purposes.
He was sentenced to five years in jail and fined BD3,000 at the High Criminal Court, which also ruled to deport him after his sentence was completed.
A 40-year-old female compatriot was sentenced to six months and fined BD100 for using meth in a hotel room rented by him, where, the court heard, he also stored narcotics.
According to court documents, the male defendant was caught red-handed in a sting operation after police received intelligence about his activities.
Under the supervision of officers, an informant reportedly arranged a meeting with the dealer to buy meth for BD12.
Meeting outside an apartment hotel in Manama last April, the disguised informant and the defendant made their exchange, with the informant receiving a bag of powdered crystal meth.
After the sale was concluded, the defendant was pursued as he entered the hotel, and was arrested when he reached his room.
In the room, police found the Sri Lankan woman ‘in an unnatural condition’, apparently high on meth, and she was also arrested.
A quantity of meth was discovered in a closet, along with two digital scales to weigh out the narcotics.
Investigators also uncovered incriminating terms in his online search engine history, where he looked up the penalty for selling drugs in Bahrain.
He later confessed to promoting and selling the drugs on behalf of unidentified individuals from Pakistan, in return for a small cut in the proceeds and narcotics.
At an earlier hearing, the Public Prosecution asked judges to sentence the pair to the maximum possible penalty.
Urine samples taken from the accused detected meth in both of them. Morphine was also found in the male defendant’s urine.
The woman earlier submitted a letter to judges in which she begged for mercy and a second chance at working in Bahrain, claiming she had two dependent children back home and that she was their sole provider. Her plea did not find favour with the judges.
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