The UAE’s top court annulled death sentences against eight Asian men convicted of smuggling a large amount of drugs into the country, newspapers reported on Thursday.
The eight were among 15 defendants tried in Sharjah on smuggling heroin, morphine and other narcotics. Eight of them were sentenced to death while the rest were given varied jail sentences.
An appeals court upheld the death verdict against the eight, who were caught smuggling drugs in mid 2008.
On Wednesday, the Federal Supreme Court turned down the death verdicts on the grounds some of the defendants were sentenced in absence and there was no proof the death verdict was reached by consensus in court.
“The court upheld the prison sentences against the remaining defendants,” Alkhaleej daily said.