A 43-year-old Australian man arrested in Bali on suspicion of smuggling cocaine could face the death penalty or life imprisonment, Indonesian authorities have said.
The man, from Sydney, was taken into custody on Thursday after police raided his rented house near Kuta Beach. Officers seized 1.7kg of cocaine, along with a digital scale and a mobile phone, according to Bali police chief Daniel Adityajaya.
The arrest followed an investigation by anti-drug surveillance teams, who reported that the man had received two suspicious packages sent by mail from the UK. Adityajaya told a news conference in Denpasar on Monday: 'He is suspected of importing or distributing class 1 narcotics. He is threatened with the death penalty or life imprisonment.'
The accused was paraded at the press conference wearing handcuffs, an orange prison jumpsuit and a black balaclava covering his face. He did not make a statement. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed it was providing consular assistance to the detained Australian.
Indonesian authorities allege the man used the Grab online service on 21 May to order a motorcycle taxi driver to pick up two packages at a post office in Denpasar. The driver was instructed to hand them to another driver, who delivered them to the Australian's rented house.
The case echoes the Bali Nine, whose ringleaders Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran were executed by firing squad in 2015. In December, Indonesia returned the five remaining members of that drug smuggling ring to Australia.
