Singaporean faces 15 years' jail term

TANGERANG: Prosecutor R. Vidianto asked the Tangerang District court on Wednesday to sentence a Singaporean, Tay Lai Hock, 31, to 15 years imprisonment and fine him Rp 750 million (US$82,417.58) for possessing 20,400 ecstasy pills.

The prosecutor charged the defendant with violating Article 59 of Law No. 5/1997 on psychotropic substances. The Article carries a maximum punishment of 15 years in prison.

Hock was arrested by customs and excise officers at Soekarno- Hatta International Airport on May 5 before boarding a flight to Sydney, Australia. The defendant strapped the drugs, which were wrapped in four plastic bags, to his body and wore a jacket to cover them.

He said he purchased the drugs from someone in Jakarta and would sell them in Sydney.

Presiding judge Suprapto adjourned the trial until next week to hear the statement from the defense. -- JP