Appeal Of Repeat Drug Offender Dismissed
By Malai FadleyRizal

Bandar Seri Begawan - Hamidon Haji Mustapha a habitual drug offender had his appeal to serve his various sentences concurrently thrown out when the Chief Justice Mohammed Saied dismissed the application.

"The appellant should consider himself fortunate that he was given only six months more than the minimum," said the Chief Justice in passing the sentence.

Hamidon was convicted on his own plea of guilty to two charges of consuming Syabu and a charge of possessing utensils for the consumption of controlled drug.

The Magistrate's Court passes a concurrent sentence of three years and six months for the first two charges of consumption, while a fine of $800 in default one month's jail for the third charge of possessing utensils, ordered to run consecutively with the custodial sentences of the first two charges.

Hamidon failed to pay the fine and he appealed for the sentences to run from the date of the sentence he was then serving in another case, as he had several previous convictions for similar offences.

His mitigation to the Senior Magistrate on the sentencing day was that he was already serving a sentence of three years and six months. He said he had pleaded guilty and asked for a "concurrent sentence to run with the present sentence with effect from the date I was put in prison," he pleaded.

The Chief Justice heard that he had a wife and child, and that if he were given a lengthy term of imprisonment his wife would not wait for him.

The minimum sentence for a second of subsequent contravention of section 6 (b) prescribed by the Misuse of Drugs Act is a minimum three years and a maximum of 10 years in jail, or a fine of $20,000 or both, the court remarked.

"The appellant admitted that these were not his first offences and in the circumstances of the case I am not persuaded that the sentences made by the Senior Magistrate were in any way disproportionate to the seriousness of those offences.

It seems to me that in all relevant circumstances the Senior Magistrate had exercised his discretion judicially and the sentence he passed was in no way disproportionate to the seriousness of the offences considering the appellant was a recidivist and a repeat offender," the court added. (Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin)

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