NusaBali reports that a 3-judge panel at the Denpasar District Court sentenced a British citizen, Baath Jarnail Singh (52), to nine years in prison after finding him guilty of possessing 1.4 kilograms of cocaine. The judges sounded the gavel and delivered their verdict in a session presided over by I Ketut Somanasa at the Denpasar District Court on Tuesday, 01 September 2026.
The judges declared the defendant legally and convincingly guilty of the criminal offense of unlawfully possessing a non-plant-based Class I Narcotic weighing more than 5 grams. The British subject was punished under Article 609 of Law Number 1 of 2023 of the Indonesian Criminal Code (KUHP). The Court’s verdict then read: “Sentencing the defendant, Baath Jarnail Singh, to nine years in prison, with the full duration of time already served in detention deducted from the sentence.”
In addition to the prison term, the defendant was fined Rp 1 billion. If the fine is not paid within one month, the defendant’s assets or income will be seized and auctioned to settle the fine. Should such seizure and auction prove insufficient or unfeasible, the fine will be converted into an additional 190 days of imprisonment.
The sentence is one year lighter than that demanded by the Public Prosecutor, who had sought a 10-year prison term and a fine of Rp 1 billion.
After hearing the verdict, the defendant and his legal counsel stated they would consider whether to appeal. Meanwhile, Public Prosecutor Finna Wulandari declared she is also considering whether to appeal for a harsher sentence.
The criminal prosecution began when the defendant was arrested by Denpasar City Police Officers in a rented room in Legian Village, Kuta, Bali, on Valentine’s Day, 14 February 2026.
The defendant claimed he visited Bali at the behest of an individual, identified by the initials MIC, who remains a wanted fugitive under Indonesian law. The defendant further claimed he was asked to receive and store a cocaine package from MIC until it could be collected by another person named Muhammad Ali.
The Indonesian authorities were able to apprehend Baath Jarnail Singh following a tip-off from the public regarding the involvement of a foreign national in an international narcotics trafficking network in Bali. Acting on this information, officers conducted an investigation that culminated in a raid on the room occupied by the defendant.
During the subsequent search, police discovered five packages of cocaine—with a total net weight of 1,419.79 grams—stashed inside the defendant’s bag and suitcase. Additionally, officers seized two electronic scales, two mobile phones, and various other items used for storing and packaging narcotics.
Analysis by the Bali Regional Police Forensic Laboratory confirmed that all the seized items tested positive for cocaine, a Class I Narcotic. Meanwhile, a urine test conducted on Singh also returned a positive result for Ecgonine Methyl Ester, a cocaine metabolite.
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