he Denpasar District Court sentenced on Wednesday Australian Brendon Luke Johnsson and Indonesian Remi Purwanti each to 5 years and 4 months' imprisonment for drug possession.
The sentence was much lighter than the 8-year prison term demanded by prosecutors who charged with violating Article 112 (2) of Law No. 35/2009 on narcotics, which carries a maximum sentence of death.
"Defendants Remi Purwanti and Brendon Luke Johnsson have been proven guilty of drug possession," said presiding judge I Ketut Kamiarsa.
The judge also slapped each of them with an Rp 800 million (US$56,847) fine, or an additional 2 months in prison should they fail to pay the fine.
The judge considered some mitigating factors in handing down the lower-than-demanded sentence including, "The defendants admitted their act, showed remorse and promised not to repeat their act again," judge Kamiarsa said.
Johnsson and Remi were arrested by the Denpasar Police's drugs squad in a raid targeting their rooming house in Kuta, on Aug 4, 2018, after receiving a tip off from residents. During the raid, police seized 13 packets of cocaine, weighing a total of 11 grams.(iwa)
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