New Zealander Handed 15-Year Prison Sentence For Importing Narcotic Drug

DENPASAR, BALI, June 30 (Antara) - The Denpasar district court in Bali has sentenced 52-year-old New Zealander Antony Glen de Malmanche to 15 years' imprisonment for illegally importing 1.602 kilograms of methamphetamine. "The defendant was proven to have violated Article 113, Paragraph 2 of Law Number 35 of 2009 on narcotic drugs for illegally importing meth," Chief Judge Cening Budiana stated while reading out the verdict here on Tuesday. Malmanche was also fined Rp4 billion, or will have to spend an additional three months in jail if he failed to pay the required sum of money. The judge affirmed that the defendant's actions ran counter to the Indonesian government's efforts to eradicate narcotics and had tarnished the reputation of Bali as a tourist destination. The defendant was polite during the court sessions and had never been jailed before. The sentence was lower than the prosecutors' demand, which was 18 years in jail and a fine of Rp4 billion, or an additional six months in jail. Malmanche was arrested by customs officers at the Bali's Ngurah Rai airport's arrival terminal on December 1, 2014, at 2:30 a.m. local time, for carrying meth weighing 1.602 kilograms. Upon arrival from Hong Kong aboard Hong Kong Airlines Flight Number HX-709, the officers discovered suspicious goods in his backpack and found crystal methamphetamine placed in a plastic bag. The officers then referred him to the police for further investigation. Upon hearing the verdict, both the prosecutor and defendant said they would take time to consider whether to appeal it. --Antara