Saudi police officers are seen in Riyadh

SAUDI ARABIA. DEATH SENTENCE FOR BAHRAINI COMMUTED

May 6, 2008: in Saudi Arabia, the death sentence of Bahraini national Maki Ali Abbas, 46, was commuted to 15 years in jail, 1,500 lashes and a fine of 100,000 Riyals (BD10,000).
He was initially convicted of smuggling drugs by a Saudi court after he was caught entering the country across the King Fahad Causeway with hashish, Bahraini Embassy first secretary Moosa Al Noaimi said.
However, his lawyers appealed against the decision since he was caught with 288 grams, which they said was not enough to prove he planned to sell it. "Last week I personally went to the prison to follow up on his case, which was taken to the Appeal Court in Saudi," said Mr Al Noaimi.
"The court reduced the sentence after reviewing the evidence and decided the amount of drugs he had with him could not possibly be used for selling." (Sources: Gulf Daily News, 13/05/2008)