Cassation Court upholder 6-year sentence for drug dealer

AMMAN — The Court of Cassation has upheld a May 2023 State Security Court (SSC) ruling sentencing a drug dealer to six years in prison after convicting him of selling illegal narcotics to an undercover agent in Muwaqar area in December 2022.

The court declared the defendant guilty of possessing a large quantity of illegal narcotics on December 3.

The SSC handed the defendant a punishment of six years in prison and ordered him to pay JD6,000 in fines.

Court documents said that the Anti-Narcotics Department (AND) learnt the defendant was in possession of a large quantity of illegal narcotics and sent one of its agents to pose as a buyer.

“The AND agent offered the defendant JD4,700 in return for two kilogrammes of Hashish and 4,000 Captagon pills,” court documents said.

When the two met, court papers stated, law-enforcement officers immediately apprehended the defendant.

The defendant contested the SSC’s ruling through his lawyer, who argued that the court “did not provide solid evidence to implicate his client of illicit drug trafficking”.

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 sentences against the defendant.

“It was clear to the court that the defendant confessed willingly to possessing the illegal drugs to sell them in the local market,” the higher court said.

Therefore, the higher court maintained that the defendant deserves the punishment he received.

The Cassation Court bench comprised judges Yassin Abdullat, Hammad Ghzawi, Qassem Dughmi, Mohammad Khashashneh and Nayef Samarat.