AMMAN — The Court of Cassation has upheld a July State Security Court (SSC) ruling, sentencing a drug dealer to over three years in prison after convicting him of possessing illegal narcotics in Irbid in January 2021.
The court declared the defendant guilty of obtaining illegal narcotics (Crystal meth) with the intent of selling the drugs in the local market in mid-January.
The SSC handed the defendant five years in prison for the offence of possessing illegal narcotics and ordered him to pay JD5,000 in fines.
However, the court decided to reduce the fine to JD3,500 and the prison term to three years and four months to give the defendant a second chance in life.
Court papers said the Anti-Narcotics Department (AND) learnt the defendant owned illegal narcotics and was intending to sell them in the local market.
The defendant was placed under surveillance by the law-enforcement agency, the court added.
On Jan. 17, the defendant was arrested while selling illegal narcotics to a man in Irbid City in return for JD20.
Crystal meth is the common name for crystal methamphetamine, a strong and highly addictive drug that affects the central nervous system, according to WebMD.
The defendant contested the SSC’s ruling through his lawyer, who argued that the court “did not provide solid evidence to implicate his client”.
The lawyer also claimed that her client was “subjected to duress to confess to something that he did not do”.
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 to sell it in the local market,” the higher court said.
The Court of Cassation judges presiding were Mohmoud Ebtoush, Nayef Samarat, Hammad Ghzawi, Qassem Dughmi and Mohammad Khashashneh.
