An Australian father who was caught with meth in Bali has spoken publicly for the first time after avoiding a lengthy prison sentence.
Troy Andrew Smith, 49, appeared in court in Denpasar on Thursday, where a panel of judges sentenced him to six months of rehabilitation at the Anargya Sober House.
The father of two, originally from Port Lincoln in South Australia, was caught with 3.19 grams of methamphetamine in a Colgate toothpaste packet at the Champlung Mas Hotel in Legian on April 30.
He and his new wife Tracy Ijusa were on a week-long vacation on the island when Indonesian police raided their resort room. She has not been charged with any wrongdoing.
The court heard earlier that police found a further 0.4g of the drug bought in Bali, along with a bong and a lighter. The charges carried a maximum prison sentence of 12 years.
Escorted by officers, Smith arrived at the courthouse in handcuffs and wearing a red prison vest over a white shirt.
“The defendant has been found guilty of drug abuse for personal use. Therefore, the defendant must undergo six months of medical and social rehabilitation at the Anargya Sober House, deducted from the time he spent in pretrial detention,” presiding judge Ketut Suarta said on Thursday.
The judge acknowledged that Smith had been polite during the trial and that he had admitted to and shown remorse for his actions.
He also took into account that Smith had never committed a crime before.
Troy Smith avoided another prison sentence and will instead spend six months in an Indonesian rehabilitation facility
A relieved Smith addressed the media outside the court after he was sentenced.
“I want to thank my lawyer Sakti,” he said.
‘To my beautiful mother and sister, sorry and thank you and to Tracy, whose support and love I rely on every day.’
His lawyer Ida Bagus Gumilang Galih Sakti added that Smith’s wife supported him despite failing to appear in court several times.
“Tracy gave him support so he could be strong,” Sakti said.
“(She didn’t come to court) just to make sure Troy focused on his case. When Tracy showed up in court with a lot of outside questions, Troy couldn’t focus.”
More to come
Troy Smith publicly thanked his wife Tracy (pictured together) after his conviction
