A Cambodian court on Wednesday sentenced an American and his Nigerian accomplice to 25 years in prison for drug trafficking.
American Matthew David Sample, 40, and Nigerian David Vincent, 48, were arrested in Phnom Penh in February 2021 for allegedly trafficking 1.31kg of methamphetamine and nimethazepam.
According to a Chinese platform, Xinhua, the two men were charged with “drug possession, transportation and trafficking” under Article 40 of the Cambodian Drug Control Law, according to the verdict read by the presiding judge of the Municipal Court. from Phnom Penh, Kim Sokunthea.
“Based on the evidence seized, the court has found them guilty of possession, transportation and illicit trafficking of drugs,” the verdict said.
“Therefore, the court decides to sentence each of them to 25 years in prison.”
The court also ordered both to pay a US$10,000 fine, it added.
According to the verdict, the court also sentenced another Cambodian accomplice, Theam Tola, 34, to three years in prison and fined him $1,000 for the same case.
During a hearing in December last year, they confessed to the crime, saying they had the drug in their possession and tried to sell it for money, as they were out of work during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Southeast Asian nation has no death sentence for illicit drug traffickers. Under his law, those found guilty of trafficking more than 80 grams of illicit drugs could be jailed for life.
According to the country’s Anti-Drug Police, authorities arrested 14,784 drug-related suspects in 2022, seizing a total of 14.5 tons of all kinds of illicit drugs.
