Australian Caught Smuggling Heroin into Bali Avoids Death Penalty

An Australian who was facing the death penalty in Indonesia after smuggling heroin into Bali was instead ordered to spend eight months in a drug rehabilitation clinic.

Jeffrey Welton was arrested by Indonesian police in Bali in September of 2022 after he was caught smuggling eight grams of heroin along with 0.34 grams of methamphetamine into the country. 

The 52-year-old surf and diving instructor was intercepted on a trip to Bali from Vietnam. 

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In a surprising verdict on Tuesday, the judge overseeing Welton’s case ruled that Welton was a drug addict rather than a drug trafficker and would be required to stay for eight months in Bali’s Anargya Sober House.

Based on the amount of drugs found on Welton, he was eligible to be sentenced anywhere between five years in prison and the death penalty.

Welton had spent time travelling back and forth to Bali where he lived for short stints of time and travelled frequently to Vietnam.

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