Cassation Court upholds 6-year sentence for drug dealer

AMMAN — The Court of Cassation has upheld a December State Security Court (SSC) ruling, sentencing a man to six years in prison after convicting him of selling illegal narcotics to an undercover agent in August of last year.

The court declared the defendant guilty of obtaining illegal narcotics (Crystal meth) with the intent of selling the drugs to an undercover agent on August 13.

The SSC handed the defendant six years in prison for the offence of possessing illegal narcotics and ordered him to pay JD6,000 in fines.

Court documents said the Anti-Narcotics Department (AND) learnt the defendant was in possession of illegal narcotics and sent one of its agents to pose as a buyer.

“The AND agent got in touch with the defendant and asked him for a small stash of Crystal meth in return for JD40,” court documents said.

When the two met, AND agents immediately arrested the suspect, court papers added.

Upon searching the defendant, the court added, police officers found 75 grammes of Hashish on him.

Crystal meth is the common name for crystal methamphetamine, a strong and highly addictive drug that affects the central nervous system, according to WebMD (https://www.webmd.com/mental-health/addiction/crystal-meth-what-you-should_know#1).

The defendant contested the SSC’s ruling through his lawyer, who argued that the court “did not provide solid evidence to implicate his client”.

Meanwhile, the SSC prosecution office asked the higher court to uphold the sentence and the fine imposed on the defendant.

The higher court maintained that the SSC had followed the proper procedures in issuing the sentence against the defendant.

“It was clear to the court that the defendant confessed willingly to possessing the illegal drugs,” the higher court said.

The Court of Cassation judges included Yassin Abdullat, Nayef Samarat, Hammad Ghzawi, Qassem Dughmi and Mohammad Khashashneh.