KUWAIT CITY, June 10: The Court of Appeals, presided over by Judge Salem Al-Khodair, upheld the verdict of the Criminal Court which sentenced two men — an American and a Bangladeshi — to 10 years imprisonment followed by deportation for trafficking in drugs, reports Alam-Alyawm daily.

Case papers indicate that the men worked for US army at Doha camp and were arrested in possession of drugs. During interrogation, they reportedly admitted that they were planning to sell the drugs.

The Criminal Court, presided over by Judge Adel Al-Saqr, refrained from punishing a Kuwaiti who was accused of possessing drugs for consumption purposes. The court released him after he signed a good conduct pledge for one year.

Police patrols had arrested the man in possession of narcotic substances. His lawyer Mohammad Al-Humaidi Al-Ajmi argued that policemen did not have a valid arrest and search warrant and so, the arrest procedure was illegal.

In another case, the Court of Appeals, presided over by Judge Ali Al-Duraei, cancelled the verdict of the Criminal Court which sentenced an expatriate to four years imprisonment with hard labor, followed by deportation and a fine of KD 2,000 on charges of possessing hashish for consumption purposes. The court released the expatriate on KD 500 bail and made him sign a good conduct pledge for two years.
Case papers indicate that police patrols in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh area noticed the suspicious movement of a group of Asians and chased them. All of them, except the suspect escaped. Police arrested the suspect and put him in the patrol vehicle. During questioning, the suspect allegedly threw 16 hashish rolls in an attempt to hide them from securitymen, but the drugs fell inside the vehicle.

Lawyer Hassan Al-Ajmi argued that his client was innocent and that he was falsely implicated in the case. He also stated that his client had no connection with the drugs.

The Court of First Instance ordered a citizen to pay his ex-wife KD 690 monthly for her and their children’s expenses and KD 2,000 to buy a vehicle for them.

Case records show the ex-wife filed for divorce through the assistance of her lawyer, Attorney Mohammad Kamal, due to irreconcilable differences with the husband.  She also presented proof that their three daughters and two newly-born sons are under her custody.  She asked her ex-husband to provide for her needs and that of their children, including the salaries of a housemaid and a driver, as well as purchase a vehicle for them.

The court ruled in favor of the woman and instructed the Kuwaiti to grant the above mentioned amounts to his ex-wife.

In yet another case, the Appeals Court cancelled the verdict of the Court of First Instance which sentenced a man to 10 years imprisonment, followed by deportation and a fine of KD 10,000 on charges of trafficking in drugs and consuming them.

Lawyer Mohammad Al-Ajmi said the investigation officer arrested the main suspect in possession of drugs and the latter admitted that he was trafficking in drugs. During the course of investigations, the officer also arrested two of the suspect’s friends, including his client. The officer did not mention the roles of the two friends and did not have any evidence against them.

The lawyer argued that the officer did not do the job properly and said the arrest warrant against his client was issued illegally. He, therefore, demanded that the court acquit his client at once.