JOHOR BARU: A 52-year-old odd job labourer escaped the death penalty when the High Court here acquitted him of a drug trafficking charge.
Justice Suriyati Hasimah Mohd Hashim acquitted Kua Seng Poo, who was charged under Section 39B(2) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, for trafficking 69.33g of methamphetamine.
She ruled that the prosecution had failed to prove the custody of the drug especially when there was a conflict of evidence between the police arresting officer and the investigating officer as to the location of where the drugs were found.
A total of four witnesses were called during the trial including an arresting officer, storekeeper, chemist and investigating officer.
According to the charge sheet, the accused had committed the offence at about 1.15pm in a place in Taman Sentosa at about 1.15pm on Sept 23, 2021.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Rashidah Baharom prosecuted while lawyer N. Mariappan represented the accused.
