British man sentenced to 10 months in Bali for drug offenses after death penalty charge dropped

DENPASAR, Indonesia (AP) — A court on the Indonesian tourist island of Bali sentenced a British man to 10 months in jail on Tuesday for drug offenses after a charge that could carry the death penalty was dropped.

Thomas Parker, from Cumbria in northwest England, was arrested Jan. 21 at a villa near Kuta beach, a popular tourist spot, after he allegedly collected a package containing drugs from a motorcycle taxi driver on a nearby street.

Police officers said Parker was “acting suspiciously” while he collected the package, according to the court document. He allegedly discarded it in a panic and fled when police approached him. He was traced back to the villa where he was staying and arrested.

A lab test confirmed the package contained slightly over a kilogram (2.326 pounds) of MDMA, the main ingredient in ecstasy, the document said.

During the police investigation, the 32-year-old electrician was able to prove that he did not order the package. It was sent by a drug dealer friend, identified only as Nicky, whom Parker had known for around two years and spoke to regularly through the Telegram messaging app.

Parker was told someone would pick it up shortly from him, and he was not promised money or anything else by Nicky in return.

Police reduced the initial charge of drug trafficking, which carries a possible death sentence, to the less serious offense of hiding information from authorities after investigators determined that the package was not directly linked to him.

During the trial, which began last month at the Denpasar District Court, Parker told the court he initially refused to collect the package but agreed to do it after Nicky assured him the package was safe and would not put him in danger.

Prosecutors on May 6 sought a one-year prison term for Parker, but the judges said they reduced the penalty because Parker regretted his acts, had not been previously convicted and promised to reform.

Parker sat silently as a panel of three judges at Denpasar District Court handed down the punishment. The judges also ordered the time he has already served since he was arrested to be deducted from his sentence, meaning he will be free in several months.

After the judges read the sentence, Parker said that he accepted the verdict and will not appeal. Prosecutors must decide whether to accept it within a week.

“I really, really regret everything that has happened,” Parker said. “I am sorry and will follow the judge’s decision.”

Indonesia has very strict drug laws and convicted traffickers can be executed by a firing squad.

About 530 people are on death row in Indonesia, mostly for drug-related crimes, including 96 foreigners, Ministry of Immigration and Corrections’ data showed. Indonesia’s last executions, of an Indonesian and three foreigners, were carried out in July 2016.

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Associated Press writer Niniek Karmini in Jakarta, Indonesia, contributed to this report.