Cassation Court upholds 2-year sentence for drug possession case

AMMAN — The Court of Cassation has upheld a February State Security Court (SSC) ruling, sentencing a drug dealer to two years in prison after convicting him of possessing illegal narcotics in Amman in June 2023.

The court declared the defendant guilty of obtaining illegal narcotics for personal use on June 13.

The SSC handed the defendant two years in prison for the offence of possessing illegal narcotics and ordered him to pay JD2,000 in fines.

Court documents said the Anti-Narcotics Department (AND) learnt the defendant, a resident of Taj neighbourhood, was in possession of illegal narcotics and put him under surveillance.

“AND agents searched the suspect and found 700 grammes of hashish and 990 Captagon pills,” court documents said.

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 defence also argued that there were "irregularities in the investigation procedures.

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,” the higher court said.

The higher court added that it had applied the appropriate punishment as stipulated in the law.

The Cassation Court bench comprised judges Mahmoud Ebtoush, Fawzi Nahar, Mohammad Sharari, Qassem Dughmi and Mohammad Khashashneh.