Facing the noose: Tai was sentenced to death for trafficking almost 200kg of drugs in Tawau on Sept 6, 2021. — Bernama
TAWAU: A mechanic has been sentenced to death by the High Court here, which found him guilty of trafficking almost 200kg of drugs.
Judge Lim Hock Leng handed down the sentence on Tai Chee Khiong, 51, after finding that the defence had failed to raise a reasonable doubt against the prosecution’s case.
He said that although it was the accused’s first offence, the amount of drugs seized was believed to be the largest in Sabah.
The judge said the amount in this case exceeded that accumulated in all five drug cases tried in the court over the past three years.“The accused did not show any remorse and did not respond, nor did the defence counsel, despite being given the opportunity by the court to say something before the sentence was meted out,” the judge said in passing down the sentence yesterday.
Earlier, deputy public prosecutor (DPP) Hurman Hussain requested that the court consider the death penalty, taking into account the amount of drugs involved and the public interest.
Also appearing for the prosecution was DPP Mohd Suhaimi Suriana.
Tai, represented by lawyer Darmin Achok, was charged on Oct 13, 2021, with trafficking 199,950.1g of syabu in Kampung Batu Payung here at 7.30am on Sept 6, 2021.
He was charged under Section 39B(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, which provides the death penalty or life imprisonment, and if not sentenced to death, to be punished with no less than 15 strokes of the rotan.
According to the prosecution, the death sentence imposed by the court was the first to be handed down after the Abolition of Mandatory Death Penalty Act 2023 (Act 846) came into effect last July 4.
