An Australian dad caught with meth in Bali has spoken publicly for the first time after escaping a lengthy jail sentence.
Troy Andrew Smith, 49, appeared in Denpasar District Court on Thursday, where a panel of judges sentenced him to six months rehabilitation at Anargya Sober House.
The father-of-two originally from Port Lincoln in South Australia, was caught with 3.19g of methamphetamine inside a Colgate toothpaste container at Champlung Mas Hotel in Legian on April 30.
He and his new wife Tracy Ijusa were one week into their holiday on the island when Indonesian police raided their resort room. She hasn’t been accused of any wrongdoing.
The court previously heard that police found a further 0.4g of the drug that had been bought in Bali, along with a bong and a lighter. The charges carried a maximum 12-year sentence.
Escorted by officers, Smith arrived at court in handcuffs wearing a red prison vest over a white business shirt.
‘The defendant has been found guilty for abusing drugs for his personal use , and therefore the defendant sentence to undergo medical and social rehabilitation at Anargya Sober House for six months, reduce the time he served in custody,’ the presiding judge Ketut Suarta read on Thursday.
The judge acknowledged that Smith had been polite during the trial and that he had admitted and shown remorse for his actions.
He also took into account that Smith had never committed a crime previously.
Troy Smith avoided more jail time and will instead spend six months in an Indonesian rehabilitation facility
A relieved Smith addressed the media outside court after he was sentenced.
‘I want to say thank you to my lawyer Sakti,’ he said.
‘To my beautiful mum and sister, sorry and thank you and to Tracy, whose support and love I lean on every single day.’
His lawyer Ida Bagus Gumilang Galih Sakti added that Smith’s wife had been supportive, despite missing several court appearances.
‘Tracy gave him support so he could be strong,’ Mr Sakti said.
‘(She didn’t come to court) just to make sure Troy only focused on his case. If Tracy appeared during the court with a lot of questions from outside, Troy couldn’t focus.’
More to come
Troy Smith publicly thanked his wife Tracy (pictured together) following his sentencing
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