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Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Outrage as taxpayers foot the bill to help accused Aussie drug smuggler as he faces the death penalty in Bali after he was allegedly caught with 1.8kg of coke
Outrage has been sparked after it emerged taxpayers are set to foot the bill for assistance offered to an Aussie facing the death penalty in Bali. Former News Corp editor David Penberthy took aim at Aussies who attempt to smuggle drugs into Indonesia following the arrest of Queenslander Lamar Ahchee. The 43-year-old son of former Queensland Senior Constable Les Ahchee was arrested in Bali last Thursday after he was allegedly caught collecting two parcels sent from the UK. About 1.8kg of cocaine was allegedly hidden inside two Lindt chocolate boxes, each containing 54 individual packets with 8.3g of cocaine each. The former tech manager originally from Cairns in Far North Queensland has allegedly tested positive for drugs while in police custody. Lamar Ahchee's lawyer, Edward Pangkahila, told reporters his client firmly denied dealing drugs, but conceded he was a 'drug addict'. 'Lamar has been set up by someone called "Boss",' Mr Pangkahila said, referencing a stranger in England who allegedly sent the Lindt boxes. 'He was told to collect the package, but he actually didn't know what the package was. He thought it was a normal package.' The quantity of cocaine Ahchee is accused of trying to smuggle into Indonesia, with an estimated street value of $1.1million, puts him over the threshold for the death penalty. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has confirmed it is offering consular assistance to an Australian in Bali. Despite the harsh penalties the Aussie is facing, Penberthy believed many Australians would prefer Ahchee be left to his own devices than shoulder his bill. 'There are gigantic yellow billboards in every Indonesian airport featuring a large image of a gun and warning: "This country executes drug dealers",' he wrote in the Sunday Mail. 'Nothing too subtle about that.' The journalist used prior cases of Australians caught smuggling drugs into Indonesia, like the Bali Nine, to highlight the 'presumptuousness' of 'taxpayer-funded assistance'. 'I never saw any polling on the question but my hunch is that most Australians wouldn't have much cared if the Bali Nine actually remained in jail in Bali for the rest of their lives,' he said. 'Lamar Ahchee has become the latest Aussie to put his hand up for consular assistance. 'Maybe I've had a compassion bypass. Maybe you don't want your government to leave you high and dry by withholding any assistance before you've even been found guilty. 'But [if] you have been found guilty, I think many Australians struggle to understand our unyielding generosity on behalf of all these halfwits who are incapable of working out what the gun is alluding to on those big yellow billboards.' Ahchee's lawyer said his client was 'very upset and stressed' at the prospect he could face the death penalty if he is found guilty. He called on police to track down the person who allegedly set up his client. 'If we can get this guy, we will find out the whole story here,' Mr Pangkahila said. Bali Police Chief Inspector General Daniel Adityajaya alleged the chocolate boxes arrived in Indonesia on May 12. When the packages arrived at the Renon Main Post Office, customs officers at Ngurah Rai Airport scanned them and suspected they contained narcotics. Officers and the Bali Regional Police Narcotics Directorate organised a controlled delivery as part of their investigation. They allege the first package came from Runwell, east of London, and was addressed to 'Alex and Julie' in Kuta Utara, near Canggu. The second was allegedly sent from Braintree, a town east of London, to 'Dave Jones' in the same region. The following day, police alleged Ahchee asked a driver to collect the packages from the post office. They met at a restaurant on May 22, and the Australian businessman allegedly took the packages back to Canggu. Ahchee was then arrested by the Bali drug squad and allegedly suffered several injuries while resisting arrest. They allege he offered almost 50million Indonesian rupiah, about AU$4700, to receive and distribute the drugs. Ahchee has been charged with three drug offences, including importing drugs. Originally from Cairns, Ahchee has been living in Bali 2017. He worked in hospitality and had stepped down as the general manager of Canggu restaurant Brick Lane Bali in November after eight months. His online profiles revealed he worked as the director and co-founder of tech groups in Jakarta and Bali from 2019, as well as previously for marketing firms in Sydney.
News.com.au
28-05-2025
- General
- News.com.au
Australian man arrested in Bali says he had no idea drug parcels contained cocaine
An Australian man who could face the death penalty in Indonesia over an alleged attempt to smuggle $1.1m worth of cocaine into Bali claims he was set up and had no idea the parcels he collected contained drugs. Lamar Ahchee, 43, originally from Cairns and the son of former Queensland senior constable Les Ahchee, was arrested last Thursday after allegedly collecting two drug-filled parcels sent from the UK. Authorities allege 1.8kg of cocaine was concealed inside two Gold Lindt chocolate boxes, with each box containing 54 individually wrapped packets of the drug that weighed 8.3g per packet. Mr Ahchee allegedly tested positive for drugs while in custody. His lawyer, Edward Pangkahila, said his client denied any involvement in drug trafficking. 'He's telling me that honestly, he doesn't know what was inside. We're still looking for that somebody who tell him to take this package,' Mr Pangkahila said. 'The police have to find this guy.' Mr Pangkahila said his client was 'very upset and stressed' by the ordeal. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed that consular support was being provided to an Australian man detained in Bali but declined to provide further information due to privacy obligations. Bali police Chief Inspector General Daniel Adityajaya said the parcels arrived in Indonesia on May 12 and were flagged as suspicious after being scanned at Ngurah Rai Airport. A controlled delivery was then conducted by customs and the Bali Regional Police Narcotics Directorate. One parcel was allegedly sent from Runwell, east of London, addressed to 'Alex and Julie' in Kuta Utara, near Canggu. The other reportedly came from Braintree and was addressed to 'Dave Jones' in the same area. On May 22, police allege Mr Ahchee arranged for a driver to pick up the parcels. After meeting the driver at a restaurant, he allegedly took the packages back to a location in Canggu, where he was arrested by the Bali drug squad. Authorities say he resisted arrest and sustained injuries during the encounter. Police allege Mr Ahchee was in possession of 1.8kg of cocaine, an amount that carries the death penalty under Indonesian law, and he was offered nearly 50 million rupiah (about $A4700) to receive and distribute the drugs. He has since been charged with three drug offences, including importing narcotics. Mr Ahchee has been living in Bali since 2017. He previously worked in hospitality and resigned as general manager of Canggu restaurant Brick Lane Bali in November last year after eight months in the role. His LinkedIn profile states he co-founded and directed tech companies in Jakarta and Bali from 2019 and previously worked in marketing in Sydney. His arrest comes just five months after the final members of the infamous Bali Nine returned to Australia, almost two decades after they were caught attempting to smuggle heroin from the holiday island in 2005. Ringleaders Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran were executed by firing squad in 2015. Another member, Tan Duc Thanh Nguyen, died in custody in 2018. Renae Lawrence, who was the only member to avoid a life sentence or the death penalty, was released in 2018. The group had attempted to smuggle 8.3kg of heroin strapped to their bodies.
The Independent
27-05-2025
- General
- The Independent
Australian man facing death penalty over 1.7kg cocaine bust in Bali ‘was only the dealer', his lawyer says
An Australian man has been arrested in Bali and could face execution by firing squad after Indonesian authorities accused him of receiving and intending to distribute 1.7kg of cocaine on the island. Lamar Aaron Ahchee, 43, originally from Cairns in northern Queensland, was taken into custody last Thursday in the beachside area of Canggu, following a joint surveillance operation by Bali police and customs officials. He is now being held at the Bali Police Detention Centre and has been charged under Indonesia's narcotics laws, which carry the death penalty for trafficking class 1 drugs. Defending Mr Ahchee, his lawyer Edward Pangkahila told the Associated Press the accused was 'not the owner of the cocaine, he is just a dealer.' In a separate statement to the Sydney Morning Herald, Mr Pangkahila said Ahchee, though a user of cocaine, had no idea the packages contained drugs. His client picked them only as a 'favour' to a friend who supposedly couldn't collect them himself. According to police, the cocaine was concealed in chocolate packaging and shipped from England in two separate parcels addressed to locations in North Kuta and Badung Regency. The packages arrived at Denpasar airport on 21 May and were flagged during a routine customs X-ray inspection. Authorities then coordinated a controlled delivery operation. Mr Ahchee allegedly instructed two drivers from local ride-hailing services to collect and deliver the packages to his rented apartment. He was arrested shortly after taking delivery. Officers say they recovered 206 clip bags of cocaine weighing 1.7kg in total, along with a digital scale, mobile phone and plastic materials in his room. Police chief Inspector General Daniel Adityajaya said the drugs were valued at Rp12bn (£544,000) and that the quantity was enough to supply thousands of users. 'With the secured evidence of 1,713.92g net estimated to be worth Rp12bn, we have successfully saved 2,666 lives from the threat of the dangers of drugs,' he told reporters. Authorities presented Mr Ahchee at a news conference on Monday. Dressed in an orange prison jumpsuit and wearing a mask, he remained silent throughout. Inspector General Adityajaya said: 'He is suspected of importing or distributing class 1 narcotics. He is threatened with the death penalty or life imprisonment.' Local media Bhinneka Nusantara reported that Mr Ahchee initially told investigators he was acting on instructions from someone known only as 'Boss', and was promised 50 million rupiah (£2,200) to accept and distribute the packages. His lawyer, Mr Pangkahila, said the Australian national had been emotionally distressed following the arrest and had slammed himself into the walls of the police station in despair. Mr Ahchee, he added, was a user of cocaine but claimed to have been misled by a foreign acquaintance he had known for about a year. 'He is not the owner of the cocaine, he is just a dealer,' Mr Pangkahila told the Associated Press. 'The police must be able to chase and arrest the person who is acting as his boss, to reveal this case fairly.' Mr Pangkahila told The Sydney Morning Herald that his client thought he was collecting a parcel as a favour and was unaware it contained drugs. He also said the individual who allegedly recruited Mr Ahchee had left the country. '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. 'My client was very upset. He was so upset he was throwing himself onto the wall and onto the floor … he is stressed because he knows the charges carry the death penalty. 'All these drug dealers, they will involve innocent people because if and when police make an arrest, they are not the ones with the drugs,' he said. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Australia confirmed that it was providing consular support to an Australian citizen detained in Bali. 'Owing to our privacy obligations, we are unable to provide further comment,' a spokesperson told Mr Ahchee had lived in Bali since 2017. His social media accounts suggest he previously worked as marketing director at the luxury beach club Omnia and later as general manager at Brick Lane in Canggu, before stepping down last year to 'embark on new adventures'.
BBC News
27-05-2025
- General
- BBC News
Cumbrian man handed Bali prison sentence for drug offence
A British man has been handed a 10-month prison sentence in Indonesia for drug Parker, 32 and from Workington in Cumbria, was found guilty of failing to report drug-related crimes to the police in was arrested after being found in possession of a package, which was addressed to him, and contained more than 1kg (2.3lbs) of MDMA, also known as had called for Parker to be sentenced to one year's imprisonment but judges handed him a lighter sentence because they said he had shown admission, remorse and an acknowledgment of guilt for failing to report the incident. The 10-month prison term will be reduced to reflect the time he has already spent in detention since his arrest in sentence is significantly lighter than the maximum for drug-related offences in the country, which can include the death his legal counsel, Parker said he had accepted the decision of the Denpasar District Court and would not appeal against the verdict. However, his lawyer, Edward Pangkahila had argued his client should have been found not guilty."We think 10 months is still too harsh," Mr Pangkahila said, adding: "He should've been released, as the evidence against him wasn't strong. "But what else can we do; he's already been detained."Honestly, he's deeply hurt." Prosecutor I Made Dipa Umbara is considering whether to appeal the court's decision to hand Parker a shorter sentence. He has seven days to decide whether to appeal against the ruling. Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
BBC News
20-05-2025
- BBC News
Cumbrian man in Bali faces prison for drugs charge
A British man has appeared in court in Bali on a drugs Parker, 32, from Workington, Cumbria, could face a one-year prison sentence for allegedly being handed a package containing 1kg (2.3lbs) of the hearing in Indonesia, Mr Parker, who was arrested in January, issued an apology and said he did not know what was in the package he received. His legal team argued he should receive the "lightest possible sentence" when the court delivers its verdict next week. Through his attorney Edward Pangkahila, Mr Parker acknowledged his mistake and promised not to repeat his legal team appealed to the court to administer a "fair and just verdict" when it meets again. The sentence is significantly lighter than the maximum for drug-related offences in the country, which can include the death hearing will resume on 27 May. Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
