The Denpasar Court on Thursday sentenced a German national, Frank Zeidler, to a decade in prison for smuggling 2.1 kilograms of hashish into Bali.
“We sentence the defendant, Frank Zeidler, to 10 years in prison and a fine of IDR 2 billion (USD 139,700),” said Esthar Oktavi, who heads the panel of judges, as quoted by Detik.
Though the 56-year-old was found guilty of violating Indonesia’s 2009 Law on Narcotics, the final sentence he received was less than what the prosecutor demanded, which was 15 years’ imprisonment.
He’s also relatively fortunate that prosecutors chose not to pursue the death penalty, which he could have potentially been sentenced to under Indonesia’s draconian drug laws (The country has executed convicts for marijuana trafficking in the past).
Zeidler was arrested in Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport in December after customs officers grew suspicious of his luggage during a security check. It prompted them to take Zeidler to an examination room together with his suitcase.
A black package wrapped in duct tape and hidden inside the lining of the suitcase was found in his bag. Authorities then examined it for narcotics and confirmed to contain hashish, a potent form of marijuana.
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