Man gets a year in jail for drug paraphernalia

A man was meted with a maximum sentence of a year's imprisonment for possessing drug paraphernalia during his arrest.

Charles Famador was arrested on February 7, 2004 following his father's report to the police that there was a shabu session going on in his nipa hut, which was behind the main house. He also said his son was there.

Members of Miscellaneous Team B of Cebu City Police Office went immediately to the place located at sitio Pundok, barangay Pit-os and saw Charles and Ramil Supapo. Police said they saw the accused still sniffing shabu.

They apprehended Charles and seized a tinfoil, lighter, and a pair of scissors from him.

A chemistry report of the PNP Regional Crime Laboratory Office showed that the tinfoil still had traces of shabu.

On the drug paraphernalia found in the Regional Trial Court Branch 13 presiding judge Meinrado Paredes said that "there is no doubt that there was intention of the accused to possess it."

Record show that the accused filed a petition for rehabilitation on February 26, 2004 for having been found positive for the use of shabu.

Then he filed a motion on May 9 on that same year to be allowed to have a psychiatric test at the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center.

He was later on released from rehabilitation. He was then arraigned last May 11.

In his decision dated August 3, Paredes stated that "the accused is a drug dependent" as shown in his records. He also said that the father's reporting to the police that his son was having a shabu session was proof enough that the accused was indeed guilty of his charge.

"No father would cause his son to be imprisoned if the latter is not guilty. This fact is not even denied by the accused himself," the three-page decision read.

Charles, after being found guilty of violating RA 9165 or the Anti-Dangerous Drugs Act, was meted with six months and one day to one year in jail plus a fine of P10,000. - Liv G. Campo