UAE court sentences Pinoy 10 years for cocaine smuggle try
A United Arab Emirates court has sentenced a Filipino to 10 years in jail for an alleged attempt to smuggle 6.4 kilos of cocaine from Brazil to Vietnam via Dubai.
The Filipino, who was arrested last October after the drugs were found in his luggage, was also fined Dh50,000 (roughly P605,972) for carrying the illegal drugs, UAE news site Gulf News reported.
He was also ordered deported once he serves his sentence.
However, Dubai prosecutors are expected to appeal the primary ruling and push for the toughest punishment. The primary ruling is subject to appeal within six days.
Officials at the Dubai International Airport found seven pouches of cocaine in the luggage of the Filipino, 38.
The Filipino pleaded guilty before the Dubai Court of First Instance, and admitted he was carrying the cocaine from Brazil to Vietnam.
“Yes, I smuggled the drugs. I was flying to Vietnam via Dubai in transit,” he said in court, and asked for leniency.
A police corporal assigned at the airport said he became suspicious of the Filipino when seeing him at the airport's transit terminal.
The officer said he accompanied the Filipino to the search room but did not find any drugs in his possession.
"(When) I checked his bag, it seemed strangely bloated on one side. I made a hole in one of the sides to check what was hidden inside. I found cocaine pouches inside. When I confronted him with the findings, (he) immediately claimed that someone handed him the drugs in Brazil and asked him to smuggle them to Vietnam for around Dh11,000," he said. — Joel Locsin/LBG, GMA News
The Filipino, who was arrested last October after the drugs were found in his luggage, was also fined Dh50,000 (roughly P605,972) for carrying the illegal drugs, UAE news site Gulf News reported.
He was also ordered deported once he serves his sentence.
However, Dubai prosecutors are expected to appeal the primary ruling and push for the toughest punishment. The primary ruling is subject to appeal within six days.
Officials at the Dubai International Airport found seven pouches of cocaine in the luggage of the Filipino, 38.
The Filipino pleaded guilty before the Dubai Court of First Instance, and admitted he was carrying the cocaine from Brazil to Vietnam.
“Yes, I smuggled the drugs. I was flying to Vietnam via Dubai in transit,” he said in court, and asked for leniency.
A police corporal assigned at the airport said he became suspicious of the Filipino when seeing him at the airport's transit terminal.
The officer said he accompanied the Filipino to the search room but did not find any drugs in his possession.
"(When) I checked his bag, it seemed strangely bloated on one side. I made a hole in one of the sides to check what was hidden inside. I found cocaine pouches inside. When I confronted him with the findings, (he) immediately claimed that someone handed him the drugs in Brazil and asked him to smuggle them to Vietnam for around Dh11,000," he said. — Joel Locsin/LBG, GMA News
Comments