By Amilia Rosa and Patrick Begley
Bali/Sydney: The mother and sister of Lamar Ahchee, an Australian accused of drug running in Bali, wept during a private meeting with him at police headquarters on Monday, his lawyers say.
Ahchee, 43, was paraded before the media last week after being arrested for allegedly accepting a delivery of 1.7 kilograms of cocaine, hidden within chocolates, for a promised reward of just $4700.
Lamar Ahchee’s family after visiting him at Bali police headquarters. Credit: Amilia Rosa
The alleged deal could put the Cairns-born businessman at risk of the death penalty if convicted under Indonesia’s drug laws.
“His mother and sister visited today,” lawyer Edward Pangkahila said. “Lamar didn’t cry, but his mother and sister did.”
Asked if Ahchee’s family believed he was innocent, Pangkahila said, “Yes, they do, and us, too”.
Sienny Karmana, another member of the legal team, confirmed that plastic bags and a scale had been found in Ahchee’s apartment in the coastal village of Canggu, but said they were consistent with personal drug use.
Australian man Lamar Ahchee being paraded before the media.Credit: Amilia Rosa
“He admitted he was a user, so sometimes he needs to rescale the drugs he bought,” Karmana said.
“It was not because he was planning on selling. He needed it because many times people will try to cheat him and sell him less drugs.”
Ahchee, a hospitality and marketing entrepreneur who was based in Indonesia, is accused of organising an unsuspecting ride-hail driver to collect two packages containing the drugs from a Bali post office on May 21.
Police allege Ahchee received the packages, which they said had been sent from the United Kingdom, from the driver at a restaurant the following day.
Lamar Ahchee, 43, had worked in Indonesia in a variety of jobs prior to his arrest. Credit: Facebook
But lawyers for the Australian have stated that he did not know the packages’ contents, had never arranged a payment and only collected them as a favour to a friend – a foreigner he had known for about a year but who had since left town.
Pangkahila has compared Ahchee’s case to that of another client, 32-year-old British man Thomas Parker, who was last month sentenced to 10 months’ jail minus time served for failing to report drug-related crime to police.
Parker was arrested in Kuta on January 21 after collecting a package that contained more than a kilogram of MDMA on behalf of a person he knew to be a drug dealer, and of whom he was afraid.
Investigators in Parker’s case dropped the charge that carried the death penalty after determining the package was not directly related to him.
Consultant John McLeod leads family members of drug accused Lamar Ahchee as they leave police headquarters in Bali. Credit: Amilia Rosa
“[Ahchee’s case] is like Thomas’ case,” Pangkahila said last week.
“I can’t speak for the police, but I can speak for my client. [Ahchee] had no idea what was in the package; he never admitted it was his, he never received or was promised payment. It was just a favour.”
Ahchee’s family members left the police station without providing a statement.
They were accompanied by John McLeod, a media and security consultant who has previously acted on behalf of convicted drug smuggler Schapelle Corby.
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