Two men who imported 9.5kg of unregulated CBD oil, methamphetamine, Xanax and Lyrica have been sentenced to life in prison and fined BD10,000 each.
The High Criminal Court yesterday found the men – a Pakistani and a Bahraini – guilty of possessing, importing, and selling synthetic cannabinoids (CBD oil), which are banned in Bahrain due to the risk of toxic additives.
The 32-year-old Pakistani was also convicted of possessing methamphetamine for personal use. The court ordered his deportation after completing a 25-year sentence.
The 47-year-old Bahraini man was tried as a repeat offender, which carries a harsher sentence, and was found guilty of using hashish and methamphetamine.
He was also convicted of assaulting police officers during his arrest, which occurred after he attempted to collect the CBD oil package from a location agreed upon with the Pakistani accomplice.
He was found guilty of assaulting civil servants – the policemen – who were enforcing the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Law during the operation.
According to the verdict, a shipment arriving from the UK under the Pakistani man’s name contained suspicious substances that Customs Affairs officers suspected to be drugs. Inside the package were 32 bottles labelled as ‘hair oil’, that actually contained nearly 10kg of CBD oil.
When questioned, the suspect claimed that he was receiving the shipment on behalf of another expatriate, and that it was to be collected by one of the latter’s agents.
Co-operating with the police, the man pretended that everything was proceeding as planned. The person behind the shipment then sent another man to collect the package, which had been dropped in a public location.
The Bahraini defendant arrived at the designated spot and was apprehended as soon as he picked up the box. He reportedly resisted arrest, kicking and punching the policemen who caught him red-handed.
Upon searching the Pakistani’s home, authorities found 10 blister packs of alprazolam (sold as Xanax), totalling 100 pills, along with sheets of A4 printer paper saturated with CBD oil.
In the Bahraini’s home, detectives found pregabalin (Lyrica) pills, and smaller quantities of CBD oil which he used recreationally. When searched, 5.37gm of hashish and 1.22gm were found on his person, along with a smoking pipe. An additional 60gm of CBD and used needles, which he used to remove oil from its containers, were found in his home.
According to the Public Prosecution, the defendant assaulted the public employees in an attempt to obstruct them from doing their job.
They did not suffer from any long-term injuries. As per Bahraini law, any injury that takes more than three weeks to completely heal is considered a disability.
The Bahraini’s criminal record shows previous drug-related convictions, which led judges to impose a greater penalty against him in this case.
He admitted to using Lyrica, and traces of the prescription drug used to treat epilepsy, neuropathic pain and generalised anxiety disorder, were found in his urine.
zainab@gdnmedia.bh
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