A suspect in a drug case has begged High Criminal Court judges to release her on remand, claiming that her infant son has ‘forgotten’ her after a four-moth spell behind bars.
The 27-year-old Jordanian mother spoke to the court, pleading to be given a second chance and allowed to return to Saudi Arabia to see her child and to renew her residency.
Accused of abusing the prescription pill pregabalin, sold as Lyrica, she is standing trial alongside two of her brothers and 10 other defendants.
The main defendant in the case is her 42-year-old brother, a veteran drug trafficker, who was in 2012 sentenced to prison and whipping in Saudi Arabia after being convicted on narcotics charges.
Beside her short speech before the court, the defendant had also submitted three handwritten letters to judges over the course of the trial. “As a mother, it pains me to inform you that my son no longer knows me, after my time in jail. When I left, he was 10 months old, and now he is a year and two months old,” she wrote in the most recent plea.
“My motherly instincts are what drive me to keep writing you,” she said. “When I came to Bahrain to check on my brothers, I was supposed to leave my infant for just for a few hours, but I haven’t been able to see him since.
“As you may know, I am not on good terms with the father of my son, and I’m close to losing custody of him. My 66-year-old dad is now caring for my son alone, since my mum is dead.
“I admit to using narcotics, due to my awful situation, for which I am extremely regretful. I did not use Lyrica in Bahrain; it was simply in my system when I got here.
“I’ve learned from my grave mistake and have repented to God. I ask your help and mercy, considering my difficult circumstances.”
She also verbally begged judges to allow her to travel to Saudi Arabia to renew her residency which is nearing its expiration date.
“I don’t have family in Jordan,” she added. “My dad and son are in Saudi, and I can’t imagine living without seeing them again. What comforts me in all of this is that they’ll be there to help me recover and move on from this stage in my life.”
She added that she came to Bahrain with her friend – the ninth defendant – merely to visit her two bothers who were in jail. She claimed she was arrested with no warning over a case she had no knowledge of.
The GDN earlier reported that the Jordanian woman’s brother had decided to settle in Bahrain after his imprisonment in Saudi but he landed in court over a hashish-smuggling racket.
He was also charged with possessing an array of narcotics for personal use such as hashish, cocaine, tramadol, pregabalin (Lyrica) and diazepam (Valium). Her other brother, a 36-year-old, is accused of using hashish.
Ten more defendants are listed on this case on drug use charges. Although many of them were implicated in helping the Jordanian with his operation, they were not charged with drug trading offences.
Half of the dozen defendants are Jordanian, while two are Bahraini. Also charged are Lebanese, Saudi, Sudanese and Egyptian expatriates.
An investigation into the brothers and two more defendants was started by the Anti-Narcotics Directorate after a tip-off from an informant.
The Egyptian allegedly used his position as a general manager of a company to receive earnings through the business’s accounts, a policeman claimed.
“Through our investigation, we learned that the first defendant’s brother and sister, along with another Jordanian defendant, brought over hashish from Saudi Arabia based on his orders,” he said. “They concealed it creatively to avoid detection as they crossed the King Fahad Causeway into Bahrain. Their leader would promote them to his acquaintances for profit.
“The leader couldn’t go himself because he previously served jail time in Saudi, was sentenced to punishment by whipping, and was finally deported, based on a previous drug conviction in 2012.
“He started living in Bahrain after his time in prison ended. He was able to possess quantities of drugs because his accomplices smuggled them on his behalf.”
Of the other defendants, nine are accused of using hashish, two of cocaine, three of Lyrica, three of tramadol, two of synthetic cannabinoids, and one of Valium, amphetamine and methamphetamine.
A policeman, who searched the kingpin’s home, allegedly found an assortment of illicit substances, in powder, pill, crystal and plant form, as well as a half-smoked joint, an electronic grinder, five digital scales, and further three gold accessories, one gold chain and a watch.
Cash was also reportedly found amounting to BD689, $265 (BD100), eight Jordanian dinars (BD4.300), 345 Egyptian pounds (BD2.700), 20 Moroccan dirhams (BD0.830) and 150,000 Lebanese lira (BD0.630).
In Public Prosecution questioning, he admitted to using all of the above-listed contraband. He also confessed to using drugs, stating that he bought 1.5kg from an unidentified man four times in one year. Many of the co-defendants admitted to possessing drugs for recreational use after buying them from the first defendant, with multiple stating that they were frequent customers.
In the fourth defendant’s house, a 50-year-old Lebanese man, $1,500 (BD566) and 10,500 Saudi riyals (BD1,050) were found, and more drugs were found in the 11th defendant’s home (43-year-old Jordanian).
The court adjourned the hearing to Sunday for further defence arguments.
zainab@gdnmedia.bh
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