KUALA LUMPUR – An ex-Malaysian diplomat with the title of Datuk has been released from police custody yesterday after the court rejected a seven-day remand order extension.
He was nabbed on May 21 for allegedly planting more than 100 marijuana trees around his residence in Kg Sum Sum Hilir, Janda Baik in Pahang and suspected of owning a cannabis plantation.
His lawyer Rahmat Hazlan was quoted by Malay Mail that magistrate Shahrol Ekhsan Hasim in Raub rejected the remand extension application and that the magistrate “was satisfied that there is no evidence to implicate (the former ambassador) with any offences, amongst others”.
Meanwhile, the court will hear the remand extension today for the son of the former diplomat.
On May 24, Pahang police chief Datuk Ramli Mohamed Yoosuf said based on the preliminary investigation, the suspect admitted to planting the marijuana trees since 2015 in an area of two hectares at a remote residence in Janda Baik, which was heavily guarded by eight dogs.
“Checks by the police behind the garage found five parcels of land with 60 marijuana trees and eight trees in a tent. We also found 34 trees at the nursery on the sidewalk of the house, making it a total of 102 cannabis trees found with a value of RM61,200.”
In the raid, the police had also seized 1.02kg of dried marijuana leaves worth RM2,500.
Following the arrest of the suspect, the police had also detained the suspect’s son at a house in Shah Alam, Selangor.
Ramli said the second suspect tested positive for the drug and admitted to taking it from 2013 to date and has been planting the trees since 2015. – The Vibes, May 29, 2022
