Australians caught in drug raids

Australians caught in drug raids

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta/Medan

A model and a teacher, both Australians, were apprehended in the
latest in a string of arrests of foreigners during the police
crackdown on illegal drugs in Bali and Medan.

Australian model Michelle Leslie, allegedly caught with the
party drug Ecstasy in a Bali nightclub, has been jailed and faces
at least a decade behind bars if convicted, police said on
Monday.

The 24-year-old Adelaide native was allegedly caught carrying
two Ecstasy tablets after police raided a dance party at GW
Cultural Park, early Saturday morning, police said.

"She was found carrying Ecstasy, and so we detained her,"
Insp. Bambang Sugiharto of the Bali Police's narcotics division
was quoted as saying by AP.

Under the drug laws, a person found guilty of narcotics
possession faces up to 10 years' imprisonment. But Leslie is
likely to get only a few months behind bars if convicted because
she was caught with such a small amount.

A preliminary urine test on Leslie failed to detect any drugs,
said Mardius Kusin, a police official.

Leslie is being detained at police headquarters, where the
Bali Nine -- a group of Australians picked up for attempting to
smuggle heroin -- were held earlier this year.

In the North Sumatra town of Medan, a 21-year-old Australian
teacher, Graham Clifford Payne, was apprehended by the police for
the possession of crystal methamphetamine and hundreds of tablets
of other illegal drugs.

Medan Police chief Sr. Comr. Irawan Dahlan said on Monday that
the Australian was apprehended on Saturday night on a street and
is now being detained at Medan Police Headquarters.

He said the police had found 0.1 gram of crystal
methamphetamine on the man and another 2,162 tablets of illegal
drugs and five syringes when the police searched his house.

"The arrest has been planned since information on the
suspect's drug use was obtained from the public. We are
continuing to work on the case as we suspect he is a drug dealer
in Medan," Irawan said.

He said the Medan Police were working together with the North
Sumatra Police and National Police Headquarters to check his
citizenship status.

Irawan said the suspect has been in Medan for two months as an
English teacher.

According to head of the Medan Police narcotics division Comr.
Irwan Anwar, a drug test on Payne's urino had produce a positive
result.

"As things stand, he could face up to five years' imprisonment
as a drug user. But if our investigation shows that he's also a
drug dealer, he might get a heavier punishment," Irwan said.

Through the police's crackdown on illegal drugs by employing
surprise raids and on-the-spot drug tests, authorities have
netted scores of celebrities and foreign tourists.

Last week, a Bali court sentenced Australian businessman John
Pyle to five months in jail for possessing a small amount of
hashish.

Schapelle Corby was sentenced to 20 years in prison in May
this year for smuggling 4.2 kilograms of marijuana to Bali.

The Bali Nine -- eight Australian men and one woman, aged
between 19 and 27 -- were arrested in April for allegedly trying
to smuggle 8.3 kilograms of heroin out of the country. Their
trial is expected to start next month.