MUAR: The High Court here has acquitted and discharged a woman of drug trafficking after finding that the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case against her.
Judicial Commissioner Kalwant Singh said that inconsistencies in the police witnesses' testimonies and unexplained circumstances surrounding the custody of the seized drugs undermined the reliability of the prosecution’s evidence.
Yeo Swee Mei, 38, had been charged with trafficking 177g of methamphetamine in front of a house in Taman Selatan Jaya in Yong Peng, Batu Pahat, at about 8pm on April 17, 2023.
She was charged under Section 39B(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, punishable under Section 39B(2).
In his decision, JC Kalwant noted the prosecution alleged that Yeo had been apprehended outside her residence while physically holding the drugs.
"However, the court found that the prosecution’s own evidence raised serious questions over whether the drugs subsequently produced in court had been reliably established as those recovered from the accused.
"The court also highlighted an unexplained second arrest at about 2.30am the same day, with the prosecution failing to clarify where the accused had been during the intervening period or adequately account for the now-deceased arresting officer’s custody of the exhibits," he said in delivering his judgment here on Tuesday (Nov 3).
He added that the death of the principal raiding officer was not in itself destructive to the prosecution’s case, nor was the absence of fingerprints.
"However, the contradictory evidence given by the remaining police officers and the unexplained circumstances surrounding the exhibits had to be assessed collectively.
"The court also noted inconsistencies in the accounts given by two prosecution witnesses, who were members of the raiding team," he said.
The court ultimately ruled that the unexplained second arrest, inconsistent testimony and uncertainty surrounding possession and custody of the exhibits collectively undermined the prosecution’s case.
"Finding that no prima facie case has been established under Section 180(4) of the Criminal Procedure Code, the court acquits and discharges Yeo under Section 180(2) without calling her to enter her defence," he said.
