The Court of Appeal on Wednesday upheld the life term of three men convicted of possessing a large quantity of narcotics for the purpose of selling it off.

Prosecutors accused two unemployed Syrians, aged 26 and 40, and a 43-year-old Saudi visitor, of possessing 3,830 amphetamine pills with the intention to sell them.

The two Syrians were also accused of possessing another quantity of more than 3.8 million tablets of the same drug. The 26-year-old defendant also faced a charge of taking drugs.

They all pleaded not guilty during the trial.

The Court of First Instance convicted them in March of the charges and ordered each to pay a fine of Dh100,000.

The court ordered that the seized drugs be confiscated and that the convicts be deported after completing their jail terms. The appellate court upheld the primary court ruling.

The arrest was made on July 12 last year.

"We had reliable information that the Saudi lived in a hotel in the International City and was engaged, together with others, in drug-related activities. We learned he had asked another suspect to arrange for a vehicle to transport a large quantity of amphetamine pills which they were to smuggle outside of the UAE," an anti-narcotics police lieutenant said.

"One of our sources was in contact with that other suspect and was asked to arrange for a pick-up vehicle to transport the drugs before he (the source) would smuggle them to Saudi Arabia."

The source was later given a vehicle arranged by the police. He and the vehicle were kept under close watch.

"With a public prosecution warrant for search and arrest, the police raided the car driven by one of the accused in the parking lot of the Dragon Mart," the officer revealed.

The defendants admitted they had drugs in a vehicle parked outside the hotel, where the Saudi stayed, and two other quantities in Al Ain and Ajman.

The lieutenant said the Saudi accused told him he came here to oversee the job of storage and smuggling of drugs. "He claimed he was to get paid SAR30 million together with another friend back home after the drugs were smuggled and sold there," the lieutenant said.

The ruling may still be challenged at the Court of Cassation within 30 days.

Source: .khaleej Times