Jail term upheld for Bahraini drug dealer

The Supreme Criminal Court of Appeal has upheld a 10 year imprisonment sentence issued against a Bahraini man, who was convicted of peddling drugs and illegally possessing weapons (swords). Court files show that the appellant was arrested after the other two suspects led to him, as he was their main provider of hashish and other narcotics.

The first two defendants were separately caught by the Anti-narcotics police and they confessed during the interrogation that they bought drugs from the appellant in return of certain amounts of money. One of the arrested agreed to co-operate with the police and a trap was set after one of the undercover officers offered to buy drugs worth BD100 from him. As many as nine pieces of hashish, seven narcotics, five swords and BD6,000 were found possessed by the appellant at the time of his arrest, according to prosecutors. Laboratory tests of the three suspects’ urine and blood samples at the General Directorate of Criminal Investigation and Forensic Science showed traces of different types of drugs.

The High Criminal Court sentenced the three defendants last year. The trio were convicted of possessing and using drugs. The first and second defendants were acquitted from the charge of selling drugs and were sentenced to one year imprisonment and to pay BD1, 000 fine each, while the appellant was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment and fined BD5, 000 for selling drugs, in addition to a six-month imprisonment sentence and a BD100 fine for illegal possession of weapons. He appealed against the verdict, but the court rejected his appeal.