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Malaysian cop gets four years for drug smuggling
Dirty cop: Malaysian police officer Lance Cpl
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Dirty cop: Malaysian police officer Lance Cpl. Salim bin Muhammad Yusof listens to the Medan District Courtâs judgment in Medan, North Sumatra, on Wednesday. The court sentenced Salim to four years in prison and a fine of Rp 800 million (US$67,923) after he was proven guilty of possessing crystal methamphetamine. (JP/Apriadi Gunawan) (US$67,923) after he was proven guilty of possessing crystal methamphetamine. (JP/Apriadi Gunawan)
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span class="inline inline-none">Dirty cop: Malaysian police officer Lance Cpl. Salim bin Muhammad Yusof listens to the Medan District Court's judgment in Medan, North Sumatra, on Wednesday. The court sentenced Salim to four years in prison and a fine of Rp 800 million (US$67,923) after he was proven guilty of possessing crystal methamphetamine. (JP/Apriadi Gunawan)
The Medan District Court sentenced a Malaysian police officer to four years in jail on Wednesday for smuggling 0.5 grams of crystal methamphetamine through Polonia International Airport in Medan, North Sumatra, in May 2013.
The defendant, Lance Cpl. Salim bin Muhammad Yusof, must also pay a fine of Rp 800 million (US$67,923) or serve another three months in prison.
The sentence, read out by presiding judge M. Isya, was in accordance with that sought by prosecutors last week.
The court stated Salim was found guilty of violating Law No. 35/2009 on narcotics.
Judge Isya said an aggravating factor was that the defendant was a police officer who, even though aware of the illegality of crystal meth, had opted to smuggle the drug into Indonesia.
Isya added that the contraband was discovered inside Salim's suitcase by customs officers. The judge added that the defendant had just disembarked from a plane from Kuala Lumpur.
'The defendant is a Malaysian police officer who knew the law but instead broke it by smuggling the contraband into the country,' Isya said in court.
Salim, 49, who had not been accompanied by a lawyer since the start of court proceedings, responded to the verdict unenthusiastically.
When the judges asked Salim for his response, the defendant ' a police officer from Selangor state ' said little, only agreeing with the judges when they asked him to consider the ruling.
An officer with the rank of lance corporal, Salim told reporters after the trial that he objected to the verdict. He said the contraband found in his suitcase was not his.
'I don't accept this. I did not bring in the contraband. It's not mine, I was set up,' said Salim as he left the court room.
Asked who owned the contraband found in his suitcase, the defendant declined to comment.
The case has drawn the attention of the Malaysian Consulate General in Medan.
Malaysian vice consul in Medan Nor Azhar Hajis said his attendance in court was to assist citizens who came into conflict with the law. He added the Malaysian government respected the law in Indonesia.
'We are not interfering with the law in Indonesia. We are just following the law in Indonesia,' said Azhar after the trial.
In an interview with The Jakarta Post, Azhar said this type of case was rare.
'This is the first case [for 10 years]in which a Malaysian police officer has been convicted for smuggling drugs into Indonesia,' said Azhar, adding the concerned party would also likely receive punishment from the Royal Malaysian Police.
