A drug dealer, who had been sentenced to 10 years in prison for making a sneaky ‘dead drop’ located inside a hollow cemetery billboard, yesterday lost his appeal against conviction in court.
The appellant had used Eker Cemetery, officially known as Shaikh Sahlan Cemetery, and its still-under-construction mosque, to hide hashish to be later picked up by his customers.
A video went viral on social media in August showing angry Eker villagers confronting and chasing the suspect after he was seen hiding packages, but he was able to flee the scene.
After initially evading the law following the close call, he was arrested while attempting to leave the country via King Fahad Causeway, when a police dog sniffed drugs hidden in his shoe.
Last month, the High Criminal Court also fined the 31-year-old Pakistani labourer BD5,000, and ruled to deport him after the completion of his sentence.
He was found guilty of possessing hashish both for sale and for personal use. He took to the Supreme Criminal Appeals Court to appeal the verdict, but judges upheld it.
The GDN earlier reported the testimony of the graveyard’s manager, who received a call about ‘an Asian person’ who appeared to be ‘acting suspiciously around the cemetery’.
“I was told this individual was sticking something behind a sign with photos of the dead, outside the graveyard’s fence,” the Bahraini community worker earlier testified.
“There were also items behind a barrier near the mosque that is under construction. The items were rolled in packing tape and were suspected to be narcotics.”
The Bahraini manager added that he witnessed the appellant walking along the fence before entering a car and followed the expatriate to West Eker, where he stopped him and asked about his actions, recounting that the suspect ‘appeared anxious’.
“In the passenger’s seat, I saw a small bag containing a dark substance,” the witness testified in court.
Following the confrontation, the appellant fled, abandoning his vehicle. The Bahraini immediately called the police, who searched the site and found an array of illicit narcotics, including several bags containing a ‘dough or paste-like’ substance.
Officers also found a bag containing a herbal substance, as well as empty bags to divide and distribute narcotics.
Shortly after the August incident, a witness shared a video showing the appellant fleeing the scene. The footage also captured his abandoned car, with drugs still inside.
The video went viral, sparking outrage among Eker residents over drug activity in their village and, last February, another video surfaced online, allegedly showing drug dealers using dead drops in the area.
The area’s MP had earlier urged for the immediate restoration of illumination, citing concerns that the graveyard was being misused for illicit activities, including the sale of prohibited substances.
Although Eker Cemetery has been frequently targeted by vandals at night taking advantage of broken lights, things are expected to improve. The adjoining Shaikh Sahlan Mosque was listed among 122 to be restored by the Justice, Islamic Affairs, and Endowments Ministry, and is set to re-open soon.
zainab@gdnmedia.bh
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