The Court of Appeal upheld the mandatory death sentence...

The Court of Appeal upheld the mandatory death sentence imposed on a Filipino drug trafficker by the High Court in 1998. Andy Baginda was sentenced to death by the Kota Kinabalu High Court on June 22,1998 after he was found guilty of trafficking 811gms of cannabis two years earlier. The decision to reject his appeal followed deliberation by Justice Datuk Shaik Daud Ismail who sat with Justice Datuk Siti Normah Yaakob and Justice Dennis Ong, all of whom unanimously agreed that there was no basis to question the High Court's ruling. He was subsequently charged under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drug Act 1952 which provides for a mandatory death sentence upon conviction.