12 foreigners fail drug tests in Bali

DENPASAR, Bali (JP): The police have released one of 13 foreign tourists arrested in Sunday's drug bust and named the rest suspects.

David Uza, a 35-year-old French national, was discharged from the Badung Police detention after he passed a urine test, the local police chief, Supt. DBM Suharya, said on Wednesday.

"The laboratory tests found traces of hashish in the urine samples of the other 12 people. There were no traces of cocaine. Only David Uzan's sample was clean," Suharya said.

The Frenchman was released early Wednesday morning.

The tourists were arrested in the early hours of Sunday for an alleged drugs orgy at a rented bungalow in Krobokan, five kilometers north of Kuta. The police also seized 13.2 grams of hashish and cocaine in the operation.

The group included seven French nationals (not nine as reported earlier), three Italians, one Swiss and one Moroccan.

"This is not the way to treat the people who love your country, are on holiday and spending money," one of the suspects, French designer Christian Audigier, told reporters.

He denied the accusation, saying that many people came and went during the party. He said he would like to contest the urine test result since he was not present in the laboratory when the test was conducted.

"In France or the U.S. you have to confirm, witness, and watch the test procedure," he said.

Another suspect, Christophe Pauvat, claimed that it was impossible for him to smoke anything since he had tuberculosis.

Pauvat, who admitted to having several surgeries due to his illness, showed a copy of a medical letter to back his claim.

Chief of Badung Police detectives Sr. Insp. Husein Abubakar refuted Pauvat's claim, saying that the urine test result clearly showed hashish and no other drugs.

If convicted, under Indonesian law, the suspects face a maximum of 10 years imprisonment for illegal use and possession of drugs. (zen)