CANBERRA, KOMPAS.com – One flight attendant Malindo Air who smuggled heroin worth millions of dollars to Australia for syndicates drugs international was sentenced to prison.
Zailee Zainal, 40, received prison terms of nine years and six months for his role in a sophisticated operation, before being arrested by Australian Border Officers last year.
When reading the court’s decision, Judge Michael Cahill said the mother of three deserved leniency, even though she would be immediately deported at the end of her prison term.
Also read: Singaporean Men Use Drones to Smuggle Drugs to Malaysia
“In sentencing there is compassion for you,” Judge Michael said.
“You feel like you have no other choice but to commit a crime.”
“You desperately want to raise money to pay for the surgery your daughter needs to improve her quality of life.”
During the trial, Zailee, from Malaysia, admitted to being recruited by a drug syndicate after it was discovered that he had to pay an accumulating medical bill for his daughter.
Zailee is also known to have started selling brownies and Tupperware to make ends meet.
But having failed to do so, he asked the Malindo Air company to raise funds for him.
“After that email, someone I thought was a friend approached me,” he said.
“I was willing to do anything.”
Also read: Singaporean citizen arrested after smuggling drugs to Tanjungpinang
Smuggling in underwear
In court, Zailee also said he had to undergo training as a drug carrier, learn how to speak in code, including walking with a drug package between his legs.
Between October 2018 and January 2019, he made a total of eight trips and smuggled over 4 kilograms of cocaine, valued at about AU $ 3 million.
On landing in Australia, he usually goes to a hotel where the exchange of heroin transactions is carried out in a toilet.
Zailie got 6,500 Australian dollars (Rp 68.5 million) for the operation that landed him in prison.
In code language, heroin is called a ‘ticket’ with a purity level of 70 to 80 percent.
Authorities in Australia successfully confiscated five packages of heroin.
The kids call himself in jail
When arrested, Zailee made a full confession but told investigators if she thought she was told to carry marijuana.
“I knew it was medicine, but I denied it and tried to convince myself that it was not medicine,” he said.
“If I had known it was heroin, I wouldn’t have done it in the first place.”
Detention of Zailee, who was carrying drugs inside bra and panties, while awaiting sentence in Australia had a profound impact on his family.
Also read: Women Who Smuggle Drugs in Tangerang Often Appear on Malaysian TV
Her husband, who is also a flight attendant, has been unable to work since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
It is also known that his children called him in prison, when he helped them with homeschooling.
Judge Michael said Zailee was “very sorry” and had written a letter of apology.
“You’re very unlikely to ever do it again,” he said.
Zailee has qualified for parole within about three years of being imprisoned.
Also read: Smuggling Drugs to Detention Centers, Umar Kei is Transferred to Isolation Cells
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