AMMAN — The Court of Cassation has upheld a January 2020 State Security Court (SSC) ruling, sentencing a man to four months in prison after convicting him of possessing hashish at his home in January.

 

The court first declared the defendant guilty of possessing hashish cigarettes at his home on January 6 and handed him a one year prison term and JD1,000 in fines.

 

However, the SSC decided on January 12 to drop the charges to four months in prison to give him “a second chance in life” and ordered him to pay JD700 in fines.

 

Court documents said the Anti-Narcotics Department (AND) received a tip-off that the defendant was in possession of a hashish cigarette and arrested him.

 

“Upon searching his home, they found several cigarettes stuffed inside his couch,” according to court documents.

 

The defendant contested the SSC’s ruling at a higher court arguing that the court failed to perform a test on the "cigarettes found in his house".

 

"The cigarettes found inside the couch do not belong to my client and the SSC prosecution office should have ordered the examination of these cigarettes," his lawyer argued.

 

Meanwhile, the SSC prosecution office asked the higher court to uphold the sentence and the fine imposed on the defendant.

 

The higher court maintained that the SSC had followed the proper procedures in issuing the sentences against the defendant.

 

The Court of Cassation judges presiding were Mohammad Ibrahim, Naji Zu’bi, Yassin Abdullat, Bassem Mubeidin and Saeed Mugheid.