Federal Court spares cannabis advocate from gallows; 15 years' jail
Malaysia's Federal Court in Putrajaya spared medical-cannabis advocate Mohd Zaireen Zainal from the gallows on 18 April 2019, substituting a trafficking charge with possession of 1.1kg of cannabis and imposing 15 years in prison with ten strokes of the cane.
Malaysia’s Federal Court in Putrajaya spared medical-cannabis advocate Mohd Zaireen Zainal from the gallows on 18 April 2019.[1][2]After he pleaded guilty to the reduced charge of possessing 1.1kg of cannabis, the court imposed 15 years in prison and ten strokes of the cane, with the term running from his arrest on 27 August 2014.[1][2]
Police had raided Zaireen’s home in Batu Pahat, Johor, in the early hours of 27 August 2014 on a tip-off and found several bottles of cannabis oil and a compressed lump of cannabis.[1]A chemist confirmed the haul was 1.1kg of cannabis and 58.5ml of tetrahydrocannabinol.[1][2]The Muar High Court sentenced him to death for trafficking, and the Court of Appeal upheld the sentence.[1][2]
His lawyer said Zaireen ran a small therapy centre from home, giving cannabis oil to sick villagers who had lost hope in prescribed medicines, and had promised not to repeat the offence.[1][2]The prosecution agreed to substitute the trafficking charge under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act with possession under Section 6 after his lawyer asked the Attorney-General’s Chambers to review the case.[1][2]
Case data
Every number and detail the sources state, with the sources that state it.
On 19 October 2026 the Sibu High Court sentenced Tiong Soon Hieng, 41, to life imprisonment and 12 strokes of the cane for trafficking 5,081.06 g of cannabis. Judge Wong Siong Tung declined the death penalty and dated the term from his arrest on 6 January 2023 outside a coffee shop in Bintangor.
Cannabis 5.081 kgPrison life imprisonment and 12 strokes
Kuala Lumpur High Court on 29 September 2026 sentenced Dasham Novada Wickramathunga, 33, to 10 years' jail and 12 strokes of the cane after he pleaded guilty to an alternative charge over about 2.57 kg of cannabis found at a Jalan Ipoh residence in April 2024.
S. Mohan, 38, and Ahmad Shamil Abdul Rashid, 28, were sentenced to 30 years in prison and 12 strokes of the cane for trafficking 139 kg of cannabis from a Bangsar car park in 2022. The judge found the case proven beyond reasonable doubt; the prosecution had sought the heavy term over the quantity.
Malaysia's Federal Court reinstated the trafficking convictions and 30-year sentences of Azril Azhar Ahmad and Zulfattar Md Ridzuan for 264.36 g of cannabis, after the Court of Appeal had reduced the charge to possession. Both had been released in February 2026.