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Two Brazilian nationals – one of whom has never been to Bahrain – have been sentenced to life in prison for conspiring to smuggle 3.3kg of cocaine into the country, with an estimated street value of BD400,000.
The 25-year-old man and 32-year-old woman met in São Paulo, where the younger defendant persuaded the other to travel to Bahrain carrying a suitcase loaded with drugs, promising payment of 17,000 Brazilian reals (BD1,245).
The High Criminal Court sentenced the man in absentia and the woman to 25 years in jail, fined them BD10,000 each and ordered their deportation after serving their sentences.
The woman was arrested at Bahrain International Airport after Customs officers became suspicious of her luggage during screening.
The man is believed not to have left Brazil and is currently wanted by Interpol.
The 32-year-old, who also faced charges of using cocaine and cannabis, was identified by prosecutors as transgender. Although she carries a female name and appearance, and her Brazilian passport lists her gender as female, the case was heard with the defendant recorded as male.
Arriving in Bahrain on January 2, Customs officers grew suspicious after screening her suitcase and suspecting it contained prohibited items. As she spoke neither English nor Arabic, they used a language translation app to ask whether she had anything to declare, and she said no.
Upon opening the suitcase, policemen allegedly found 36 bags of cocaine stuffed in patterned bags tucked between personal items and clothes.
During questioning by the prosecution, a Portuguese-language interpreter from the Brazilian Embassy translated her statements, in which she claimed she was unaware of the suitcase’s contents.
She testified that a friend-of-a-friend – the second defendant – gave her the suitcase, and instructed her not to open it under any circumstances.
He bought her a ticket to Bahrain, with a layover in Qatar, and she set out of São Paulo on December 31. She arrived in Bahrain two days later on a visit visa, where she was arrested on charges of drug trafficking.
The GDN earlier reported that although the defendant presented as a woman, a medical expert confirmed the transgender individual is biologically male while exhibiting female physical characteristics. A DNA test also indicated the presence of XY chromosomes. However, she is legally recognised as a woman in her home country, with a female gender marker on her documentation. She told prosecutors that she began hormone replacement therapy (HRT) at age 13, and has lived as a girl since.
A urine test reportedly revealed that the defendant had cocaine and cannabis in her system.
Meanwhile, not much is known about the second defendant, who stood trial in absentia.
The Public Prosecution described the 3.3kg of cocaine as a ‘staggering amount’ of narcotics, and asked to penalise the suspects to the fullest extent of the law.
An earlier Interior Ministry statement indicated that the contraband was worth up to BD400,000 in street value.
zainab@gdnmedia.bh
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