KANGAR: A Thai woman is facing the death penalty after she was charged at the magistrate's court here today with trafficking 5.25kg of heroin in Padang Besar last month.
Aunchan Houbjoo, 30, from Bangkok, nodded in understanding when the charge was read to her in Thai by the court interpreter before Magistrate Norshahida Abdul Rahim.
According to the charge sheet, Aunchan, who is unemployed, was accused of trafficking the drugs at the Immigration, Customs, Quarantine, and Security Complex in Padang Besar.
She was accused of committing the offence at 6.40pm on Aug 28.
The charge was framed under Section 39B (1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 (Act 234), punishable under Section 39B(2) of the same Act.
She faces the death penalty or life imprisonment and whipping upon conviction.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Tengku Ruqayyah Tengku Shahrom prosecuted while the accused was unrepresented.
The court ordered that the accused to be held without bail and set Nov 20 as mention.
The Customs Department, on Aug 28, found a white powder, suspected to be heroin, weighing more than 5kg worth almost RM500,000, hidden in a special compartment within two handbags and a backpack inside two suitcases carried by a Thai woman.
The attempt to smuggle the drugs was detected when the woman passed through a scanning machine room leading the customs officers on duty to immediately detain her upon her arrival from Bangkok.