The New Zealand man accused of carrying 1.7 kilograms of meth into Bali in his backpack in December 2014 was reportedly given the opportunity to speak up at his trial.
Antony de Malmanche, father of three, maintains his innocence and told his trial in Bali that he was manipulated through his then online American girlfriend (or so he thought at the time), identified as “Jessie.”
The 52-year-old said in trial he came to Bali from Hong Kong, because he was originally supposed to meet Jessie in Guangzhou, China for vacation, but instead met a man named James, who claimed Jessie couldn’t enter China from South Africa where her chocolate business is, reports New Zealand’s 3 News.
Larry, a man who de Malmanche says he believed to be Jessie’s assistant arranged for the online couple to meet in Bali, but only after James brought the kiwi a “bag and clothes” to carry for Jessie. He then says he took a bus from Guangzhou to Hong Kong to catch his flight to Bali.
He reportedly said his bag was checked three times in Hong Kong, so he was in a total state of shock when Bali Customs officers pulled out the meth that could land him the death penalty.
“She never asked for money from me,” he said, as quoted by 3News.
“She always said that she loved me.”
But “Jessie” and this exploitive drug scheme was not the only thing de Malmanche laid out in trial. He also spoke extensively of his history of mental health problems, reportedly saying he was physically abused by his family, put in foster care.
Photo: AFP
