MALAYSIA: GUINEAN COLLEGE STUDENT SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR DRUG TRAFFICKING

January 16, 2017: A 29-year-old Guinean college student was sentenced to death by the High Court in Kuala Lumpur after he was found guilty of trafficking in 3,304.6gm of cocaine. 
Judicial Commissioner Datuk Nordin Hassan handed down the sentence on Emmanuel Kamano after the defence failed to raise reasonable doubt against the prosecution's case.  
In the judgment, Nordin said the court found that the accused had knowledge of the drug which was coated with chocolate and placed in a plastic bag. 
"The accused failed to rebut the presumption of ownership and the large amount of drug involved, meant for distribution. Therefore the accused is convicted of the offence and sentenced to death by hanging," he added. 
Kamano's friend, a Nigerian businessman, was acquitted and discharged of the same charge.
Nordin said the court found that the first accused, 39-year-old Ifeanyi Atuenyi had no knowledge of the drug and that his testimony was in tandem with his reaction when caught by the police. 
Atuenyi had a car rental service and it was not unusual for him to bring the second accused to Kepong in his vehicle, he added. 
Atuenyi and Kamano were jointly charged with drug trafficking at the MRR2 Expressway, Kepong-Sungai Buloh, at 6.15pm on June 22, 2015.
Five prosecution witnesses and four defence witnesses were called to testify during the hearing of the case which began on Oct 4 last year.  
Deputy public prosecutor Ezrene Zakariah prosecuted, while Atuenyi and Kamano were represented by lawyers Datuk N.Sivananthan and Norman Mohd Nasir, respectively. (Sources: Bernama, 16/01/2017)