PUTRAJAYA: The Federal Court has upheld a 30-year prison sentence and 12 strokes of the cane for a man convicted of drug trafficking.
Chief Justice Datuk Seri Wan Farid Wan Salleh led a three-member panel that unanimously dismissed the final appeal by 40-year-old Liau Vui Pin.
The court found no appealable error in the previous High Court and Court of Appeal decisions, declaring the conviction safe.
Liau, a former driver and cook from Sabah, was convicted on September 15, 2023 for trafficking 738.77 grammes of methamphetamine.
The offence occurred at Kuala Lumpur International Airport’s scanner machine area at 1.15 pm on September 16, 2019.
A patrolling police officer noticed Liau behaving suspiciously and walking uncomfortably, prompting a security inspection.
The inspection revealed two cello-taped packages concealed inside his shoe heels and another package hidden in his underwear.
Liau claimed in his defence that a man named Anson had told him the packages contained “elephant tooth powder”.
The Court of Appeal had previously rejected his appeal on September 12, 2024 before today’s Federal Court decision.
Lawyer Goh Cia Yee represented Liau during today’s hearing while deputy public prosecutor Faizal@Amrin Noor Hadi appeared for the prosecution. – Bernama