By Buth Reaksmey Kongkea
A 30 YEAR-OLD Sierra Leone man was tried in absentia yesterday by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on charges of sending over 200 grams of heroin through the Cambodian post.
Duch Kimsorn, presiding judge at the court, said that Kapo Alfred, a Sierra Leone tourist, was charged by the court on March 15 for international drug trafficking.
The alleged drug-trafficker sent 226 total grams of heroin in five separate envelopes to three separate addresses in Australia, Duch Kimsorn said.
“He put the drugs inside five envelopes and mailed it to Australia. This is against the law,” Duch Kimsorn said.
Chap Socheat, the Daun Penh Post Office’s chief of administration, said that on March 10 his staff reported irregular mail pieces. Upon inspection, Chap Socheat discovered that the five envelopes contained heroin. One of the envelopes listed Kapo Alfred’s nickname, Chris Alfred, as the sender, which was how authorities caught him.
Deputy prosector Meas Chanpiseth said in court yesterday that the police investigation had proven that Kapo Alfred was the sole sender of the envelopes.
“There is enough evidence to prove that Kapo Alfred sent the drug envelopes. Therefore, I would like to ask the court to sentence him according to Cambodia’s laws,” he said.
Bun Kong, Kapo Alfred’s defense lawyer, denied the charges against his client yesterday in court, claiming that there was no proof that his client was guilty.
“There is no evidence that shows that my client was the owner of these envelopes, so I’m asking the court to drop the charges against him,” he said.
A verdict in the case is scheduled to be delivered on October 12.
Duch Kimsorn, presiding judge at the court, said that Kapo Alfred, a Sierra Leone tourist, was charged by the court on March 15 for international drug trafficking.
The alleged drug-trafficker sent 226 total grams of heroin in five separate envelopes to three separate addresses in Australia, Duch Kimsorn said.
“He put the drugs inside five envelopes and mailed it to Australia. This is against the law,” Duch Kimsorn said.
Chap Socheat, the Daun Penh Post Office’s chief of administration, said that on March 10 his staff reported irregular mail pieces. Upon inspection, Chap Socheat discovered that the five envelopes contained heroin. One of the envelopes listed Kapo Alfred’s nickname, Chris Alfred, as the sender, which was how authorities caught him.
Deputy prosector Meas Chanpiseth said in court yesterday that the police investigation had proven that Kapo Alfred was the sole sender of the envelopes.
“There is enough evidence to prove that Kapo Alfred sent the drug envelopes. Therefore, I would like to ask the court to sentence him according to Cambodia’s laws,” he said.
Bun Kong, Kapo Alfred’s defense lawyer, denied the charges against his client yesterday in court, claiming that there was no proof that his client was guilty.
“There is no evidence that shows that my client was the owner of these envelopes, so I’m asking the court to drop the charges against him,” he said.
A verdict in the case is scheduled to be delivered on October 12.
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