Indonesia sentences Australian to six months of rehabilitation for drug possession in Bali

DENPASAR, Indonesia — An Indonesian court on Thursday sentenced an Australian man to six months of medical rehabilitation after convicting him of possessing methamphetamine on the resort island of Bali.

Troy Andrew Smith, of Port Lincoln, South Australia, was arrested on April 30 after police raided his hotel in Legian, a popular tourist spot near Kuta Beach, and seized 3.15 grams (0.1 ounce) of crystal methamphetamine from a toothpaste container in his room. Police found another 0.4 grams of the drug, as well as a bong and a lighter in his desk drawer.

His previous drug trafficking charge was dropped, which would have carried the death penalty.

The arrest was prompted by a tip that Smith had received a suspicious package containing toothpaste from Australia in the mail. Under Indonesia's tough drug laws, he faces up to 12 years in prison if convicted.

Smith remained silent as the three judges at the Denpasar District Court handed down the sentence. The judges also ordered that time he had already spent in rehabilitation since his arrest be credited against his sentence, meaning he will be free in a few months.

“The defendant committed a criminal offence of misusing Class I narcotics for personal gain,” said Presiding Judge Ketut Suarta. “What he did was frustrate the government’s efforts to combat drug trafficking.”

Prosecutors had requested eight months of medical rehabilitation for Smith, but judges said they reduced the sentence because Smith regretted his actions and had vowed to reform.

During the trial which began two weeks ago, the 49-year-old accountant told the court he had ordered the drugs from a man in Australia three weeks before his arrest and that he regretted his actions and had apologised.

He said he has been using methamphetamine regularly on a daily basis to reduce his depression and anxiety since 2020.

Authorities reduced the original charge of drug trafficking, which carries a possible death sentence, to the lesser charge of drug use after a police drug assessment team determined he was simply a drug user.

After the judges read the sentence, prosecutors and Smith's lawyers said they accepted the verdict and would not appeal.

Smith expressed gratitude to his Indonesian and Australian lawyers, his mother and his sister, for their help and support when speaking to reporters after the sentencing hearing.

“Thank you to Tracy, whose love I give every day,” Smith said, referring to his new wife. He was on his honeymoon in Bali when he was arrested.

Indonesia has strict drug laws and convicted traffickers can be shot. More than 150 people are on death row, mostly for drug-related offences, and about a third of them are foreigners.

Eighteen people convicted of drug offences have been executed under current President Joko Widodo, who took office in 2014.