Lombok court says Frenchman
should face firing squad
The prosecutors sought a
20-year jail term but Indonesian court said he deserved the death penalty
By ASIA TIMES STAFF
A Frenchman who was convicted
of drug smuggling in Indonesia has been sentenced to death. He could have to
face a firing squad if the penalty is upheld by higher courts.
Felix Dorfin, 35, was found
guilty of possessing about 3 kilograms of methamphetamines and 22 tabs of
ecstasy at Lombok airport in September 2018. The drugs were worth at least
US$220,600, The Independent reported.
A panel of three judges handed
down the death sentence at Mataram District Court on Lombok Island on Monday,
despite prosecutors only seeking a 20-year prison sentence.
Presiding Judge Isnurul Syamul
Arif said the case showed that Dorfin was legally and convincingly guilty of
bringing narcotic drugs into the country.
He said Dorfin was involved
with an international drug syndicate and the amount of drugs he was caught with
were aggravating factors.
“The defendant’s actions could
potentially do damage to the younger generation,” the judge was
quoted as saying.
So, there was no reason to
give him a lighter sentence.
The Frenchman declined to speak
to the press on his way back to prison. His lawyer said they would appeal
against the sentence.
Dorfin, who hails from Bethune
in France, had said he was unaware of drugs found in his luggage and claimed
that someone had instructed him to carry the bag.
The man had managed to escape
from a detention center in January with the help of a police officer who was
bribed. But 10 days after, he was caught near a forested mountain on Lombok.
Indonesia has some of the
world’s toughest drug laws and has executed foreigners in the past. More
than 150 people are on death row, mostly for drugs. About a third of them are
foreign citizens.
The country’s last execution
took place in 2016.
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