PANJIM: Massive difference in the quantum of drugs seized during a raid at Pernem has been one of the reasons for the release of two foreigners on conditional bail.
African nationals Domnic Nwkeke and Jonathan Chimenzi, in judicial custody for over two years of their arrest in August 2019, were found travelling in a car carrying a cocktail of drugs including party drugs.
While their two petitions before the Sessions Court including one filed on submission of the chargesheet were rejected; the present pleas before the High Court of Bombay at Goa were adjourned for the reason that Chemical Analysis (CA) report had been filed before the Sessions Court and its copy were required to be placed before the High Court in these applications.
During the hearing, the legal representative of the applicants pointed out to relevant portions of the CA report wherein the result of examination which forms part of the report showed that LSD and MDMA were not detected in the samples collected. It then recorded that Methamphetamine was detected in one of the samples and so was Cocaine and Heroin.
The counsel also invited the attention of the High Court to the FIR that mentioned 29 grammes of suspected MDMA were recovered. The CA report, on the other hand, showed that MDMA was not detected but it was Methamphetamine. According to the contents of the complaint that led to the registration of FIR, the quantity of the same was stated to be 29 grammes whereas as per entry of the table appended to the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, the commercial quantity of Methamphetamine is stated to be 50 grammes.
“It showed that the quantity recovered in the present case was less than the commercial quantity,” the counsel said.
Similarly, as per another entry in the same NDPS table, the commercial quantity of Cocaine is specified to be 100 grammes but as per the complaint, the amount recovered of suspected Cocaine was 05 grammes. The complaint further showed that 12 grammes of suspected Heroin was recovered while the NDPS Act categorised 250 grammes as commercial quantity.
“In other words, the CA report does show that the quantities of Methamphetamine, Cocaine and Heroin were detected and that if the quantities are matched from the contents of the aforesaid complaint, it becomes evident that the same was below the commercial quantity. The contents of the CA report when read with complaint leading of the registration of the FIR would show that even if the contents of the complaint were to be believed, the commercial quantity of the said substances were not recovered, which is a factor in favour of the applicants,” the counsel stated.
Justice Manish Pitale, who heard the matter observed that “in view of the fact that the investigation is complete and chargesheet is already filed, as also the fact that the applicants have been in custody for more than two years and in view of the contents of the CA report, which has recently come on record, the present applications can be conditionally allowed”.
