Court day: Mohinder (centre) has been ordered to enter his defence by the High Court for distributing drugs and caffeine five years ago, while Peramla has been acquitted and discharged. — RONNIE CHIN/The Star
IPOH: A transport business owner has been ordered to enter his defence for distributing about 1.8kg of heroin and monoacetylmorphines five years ago.
Justice Abdul Wahab Mohamed issued the order after determining that the prosecution had proven a prima facie case against Mohinder Singh, 45, for all five charges brought against him.
Mohinder’s wife, G. Peramla, 54, was acquitted and discharged without her defence being called.
In the first charge under Section 39B(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, the couple was accused of distributing 524.1g of heroin and monoacetylmorphines at the parking lot of a house in Bandar Baru Sri Klebang, Chemor, near here, at 6.25pm on Nov 22, 2019.
In the second charge under Section 39B (1)(a), Mohinder was accused of possessing 1.322g of heroin and monoacetylmorphines inside the house on the same date and time.
He also faced three other charges framed under the Poisons Act 1952 for possessing 60.55kg of powdery material and 93ml of liquid, both containing caffeine, and 10.74kg of powdery material containing chloroquine on the same date, time and location.
Abdul Wahab said Mohinder had access to the house, drugs and poison.
He had been in possession of a plastic bag containing the drugs, which he had put inside a car.
No one else was in control of the bag.
“The accused had knowledge of the drugs and the amount seized is not for personal consumption,” the judge said.
As for the second accused, Abdul Wahab said that she was there to fetch and send her husband in the said vehicle.
The prosecution was led by Deputy Public Prosecutors Saiful Akmal Mod Said and Liyana Zawani Mohd Radzi.
The accused were represented by Wan Azwan Aiman Wan Fakhruddin, Effa Azuin Aidrul Hisham and Hartrisha Kaur Sandhu.
During the trial, 15 prosecution witnesses were called to testify.
Wan Azwan Aiman then informed the court that his client would testify under oath from the witness stand.
The court set Aug 28 and 29 for trial.
Police released a statement in 2019 alleging the conversion of a house in Klebang into a drug laboratory and the seizure of drugs including heroin and caffeine.
