Family members of two Bruneian 'drug mules' facing a jail sentence in China plan to visit them

Bandar Seri Begawan - Family members of two Bruneian 'drug mules' facing a jail sentence in China plan to visit them when they have enough cash during the school holidays, according to a local diplomatic source in China.However, the source said no other information was available to the mission concerning the two Bruneians.
The Narcotics Control Bureau Public Relations Officer also expressed a similar view, saying that no further information was available to them when asked on the five Bruneians facing jail sentences in China, Australia and Chile respectively.Chile recently suffered a strong earthquake that reportedly caused its prison to collapse.Members of the public have raised their concerns on their fate, calling them to be repatriated and serve their sentences in the sultanate instead.
A 41-year-old Bruneian woman charged last December with importing 470 grammes of drugs into Coolangatta airport, Australia, concealed on her person and inside her body. The maximum penalty for these offences is 25 years imprisonment and/or a $550,000 fine.

In May last year, a 29-year-old Bruneian woman also faced charges in an Australian court for allegedly smuggling around two kilos of heroin to that country. The Bruneian woman was charged with importing two kilos of heroin, which is regarded as a marketable quantity of a border controlled drug and may face a maximum penalty of 25 years imprisonment and/or a fine.

A 29-year-old local man who was caught smuggling 995.72 g of heroin hidden inside the lining of his bag into Tianjin, China in June last year has been sentenced to life imprisonment last November 2009.

A 26-year-old Bruneian woman was also sentenced to life imprisonment in Shanghai for trying to smuggle 894.05 grammes of heroin, also inside the lining of her bag in January last year.

A 26-year-old man was apprehended in February 2007 in Santiago, Chile for attempting to smuggle 5.73kg of cocaine in his suitcase.

During the recently concluded legislative council session, Pehin Orang Kaya Pekerma Dewa Dato Seri Setia Awg Lim Jock Seng, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade II said the government of Brunei Darussalam will not interfere with the affairs of other countries and will always respect their laws and regulations.

He was responding to the query with regards to Bruneians who were detained in China, Australia and Chile for drugs. Brunei's Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Trade will continue to maintain good relations with other countries.Meanwhile the New Straits Times reported last Tuesday, that an international drug ring, operating out of Malaysia, was busted with the arrests of six African men and two women on Saturday night.The drug ring, believed to be run by Africans, was uncovered after three women were nabbed earlier trying to leave the country with drugs in separate operations.
Narcotics Department Deputy Director Datuk Othman Harun said police questioned the three drug mules and investigations led the team to various locations in the city where the Africans and two other women were picked up.
The suspects, aged between 20 and 40, were remanded on Sunday to facilitate investigations under the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.In the first case, at the low-cost carrier terminal (LCCT) in Sepang, a Chinese national in her 20s was apprehended as she attempted to board a flight for China. Police found compartments inside the bag where about 1kg of cocaine was hidden. The cocaine was meant for distribution in China.-- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin