An appeals court has upheld the life sentences of five drug mules convicted of smuggling heroin and methamphetamine into Bahrain by swallowing capsules containing the drugs.
The court heard that the expatriates had previously smuggled drugs into the country by concealing them in their stomachs and evading detection, before being caught following a tip-off and subsequent investigations.
They were reportedly paid between four million and five million Pakistani rupees (BD5,400 to BD6,800) for each trip.
A sixth accomplice, who was also sentenced to life imprisonment, had his appeal rejected by the Supreme Criminal Appeals Court.
All six Pakistani nationals were additionally fined BD10,000 each.
A detective testified that the drug mules were part of a larger trafficking network, which had agents in Bahrain tasked with receiving the contraband after it was excreted by the couriers.
In its verdict, the High Criminal Court described the six men as ‘extremely selfish’ for bringing drugs to ‘a nation that has welcomed them with open arms’.
“A good guest respects the house that welcomes him, but a wretched guest brings his poison to kill the youth that live in it,” read the previous verdict.
The court stated that the defendants, all foreign nationals, had used their home country ‘as a base of operations from which to spread toxins in this country for their material gain’.
“They sought to make a quick profit without batting an eye at the consequences of their actions,” judges said.
“They came to a country that lavished them with its blessings and provided them with a safe haven. It opened its arms for them to make a decent living by working here, but in return they harmed citizens and residents.
“They have no respect for this nation’s laws, and have committed abhorrent acts that demonstrate their extreme selfishness.”
The five appellants, aged between 21 and 31, arrived on flights from their home country over a period of time, allegedly carrying the contraband in their abdomens. Although they initially succeeded in evading authorities, investigators later linked them through an inquiry.
The court heard that officials received a tip-off about the suspects, all of whom were found in the same area in Manama.
Some of the appellants were arrested in a flat, while others were found in a car parked outside the building.
Among the drugs recovered from the residence were 24 capsules containing 194gm of an unspecified narcotic hidden on the balcony, 61 capsules containing 490gm of a narcotic concealed in a sock, and 4.7gm of a crystal substance.
In the car, authorities found 61 rolls of a crystal substance weighing 515gm, a package of beige powder weighing 8gm, and 24 rolls weighing 192gm stuck together with silver adhesive tape. Two additional socks containing heroin were also reportedly recovered.
In the sixth appellant’s apartment, authorities found 72 packages of a crystal substance, along with 29 pieces of paper saturated with CBD oil.
In June, the High Criminal Court found the six Pakistanis guilty of possessing narcotics with intent to trade and sell.
They were sentenced to 25 years in prison and fined BD10,000 each. The court also ordered their deportation after completion of their sentences and the confiscation of the seized drugs.
The Supreme Criminal Appeals Court upheld the ruling.
zainab@gdnmedia.bh
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