Hidden in Sweets: Drug Parcel Lands Bahraini Housewife Back in Court

A 46-year-old Bahraini housewife is seeking to overturn a 10-year prison sentence after authorities discovered drugs hidden inside a postal parcel filled with sweets and food items sent from Europe.

The Fifth High Criminal Court of Appeal reviewed the woman’s appeal against an earlier ruling by the High Criminal Court, which sentenced her to 10 years in prison, fined her BD5,000, and ordered the confiscation of the seized substances after convicting her of importing and consuming narcotics.

During the hearing, lawyer Dalal Al-Thawadi appeared with the appellant and requested that her client be referred to a psychiatric evaluation to determine whether she was aware of her actions, stating that the woman has been receiving psychiatric treatment for the past 25 years.

The court agreed to the request and ordered that the defendant be examined by psychiatric specialists to assess her mental responsibility. The case was adjourned to March 18 for the next hearing.

Prosecutors accuse the woman of importing marijuana for the purpose of trafficking, as well as possessing hashish for personal use, in violation of the law.

According to customs testimony, the case began when an officer inspecting incoming parcels at Bahrain’s postal facilities became suspicious of a package addressed to the defendant and sent from a European country. After scanning the parcel using an X-ray device, the officer noticed unusually dense contents.

Upon opening the parcel, he found food items and sweets concealing six small green bags and a package containing 11 small red boxes, which held a plant-based substance emitting a strong odor. The substance was suspected to be marijuana weighing approximately 194 grams, hidden among the food items in a sophisticated manner.

The parcel was seized and marked, and a postal notification was sent to the recipient. The following day, the defendant arrived to collect it and signed the delivery form. When asked about the contents, she initially said the parcel contained cosmetics. 

However, when the officer opened the parcel in front of her, a strong herbal smell emerged. The defendant reportedly said the smell resembled marijuana and claimed that an Asian man had asked her to receive the parcel on his behalf.