An Australian father accused of drug offenses in Bali sleeps on the cement floor of a cell with 12 other inmates as he faces the prospect of life behind bars.
Troy Smith, 49, has been charged with drug possession and trafficking after police raided his hotel room on the Indonesian island on April 30.
Officers allegedly found more than 3 grams of methamphetamine in a toothpaste tube, a bong, and 0.04 grams of methamphetamine in a sunglasses case.
Indonesian authorities allege the father-of-two from Port Lincoln, South Australia, smuggled the drugs from Australia to Bali.
Smith is currently being held in an overcrowded concrete cell at Denpasar police headquarters, with no guest privileges and only a bucket to use as a toilet.
Troy Smith, 49, has been charged with drug possession and trafficking after police raided his hotel room on the Indonesian island last month (Smith is pictured with his wife Tracy Ijusa).
In the photo, inmates of the famous Kerobokan penitentiary in Bali, Indonesia.
On Monday, Smith was accompanied by police to Denpasar hospital after complaining of back pain, which is understood to be not serious.
In a major escalation in the case, Smith hired high-profile “fixer” John McCleod of consultancy Tora Solutions to launch his own investigation.
McCleod helped free Schapelle Corby from Kerobokan Prison in 2014 after she was charged with drug trafficking.
Meanwhile, Smith’s lawyers say the 49-year-old had purchased methamphetamine in Bali and was struggling with addiction.
They argued that it would be better to place their client in a halfway house than in a cell, allowing Smith to avoid prison altogether.
Smith had been on holiday with his wife of four months, Tracy Ijusa, when police raided their room at the Champlung Mas hotel in Legian on April 30.
On Monday, Smith was taken to Denpasar hospital after complaining of back pain.
Smith had been on holiday with his wife of four months, Tracy Ijusa (pictured), when police raided their room at the Champlung Mas hotel in Legian on April 30.
They allegedly found 3.14g of methamphetamine hidden in a tube of Colgate toothpaste that had been sent to Smith from Cairns, in a package that was labeled as containing private documentation, photographs and lubricant.
Police allegedly found another 0.4g of drugs that had been bought in Bali, along with a water pipe and a lighter.
Smith was initially charged with drug possession, which carries a maximum sentence of 12 years, but was later charged with drug trafficking, which can result in offenders being sentenced to life in prison in Indonesia.
Outside a police news conference on Monday, one of Smith’s lawyers, Sienny Karmana, said his client had tried to evade arrest “because he was afraid,” and police fired two warning shots into the air before he was detained.
“The police said he tried to run away, but the police caught him. They fired shots in the air, he was shocked and then he fell and then the police caught him,” he said.
Smith’s lawyers say the package of drugs was sent to him by a friend as a thank you for helping with the purchase of a car, and Smith did not know what it contained.
Mrs Ijusa attempted to visit her husband in custody on Monday but was rebuffed.
Police said officers allegedly found more than 3 grams of methamphetamine in a toothpaste tube, a bong and 0.04 grams of methamphetamine (pictured, police news conference Monday).
Another of Smith’s lawyers, Ida Bagus Gumilang Galih Sakti, said her client was “very depressed and remorseful” about the situation.
“I found out from Troy… that it was a gift, because the sender knew it was a user,” Sakti told reporters outside the conference.
Smith was originally from Port Lincoln in South Australia, but appears to have moved to Cairns in the last two years.
He proposed to Ijusa in October last year and they tied the knot in January with holiday photos showing the couple enjoying the pool and nights out.
She was also arrested after the hotel room raid, but was released without charge and remained in Bali to support her husband.
It is understood Smith’s relatives flew to Bali last week.
INSIDE BALI’S FAMOUS KEROBOKAN PRISON
The prison was built to house 300 inmates but, in 2017, it had more than 1,400 inmates, men and women, of different nationalities.
Inmates have previously described it as a “hell” with frequent “murders, rapes, drug overdoses and beatings.”
Announcements and sirens over loudspeakers blare every day and inmates constantly compete for space in the crowded cells.
More than 90 percent of the prisoners are Indonesian and 78 percent were convicted on drug charges. Each prisoner is allocated 15,000 rupees ($1.08) per day.
Inmates are photographed inside the famous Kerobokan penitentiary in Bali, Indonesia.
