A 25-year-old Singaporean man who collected a parcel containing cannabis upon his best friend's request was sentenced on May 26, 2026, to 16 years and 10 months' jail.

Charge sheets and court documents seen by Mothership showed that Alger Aw Wei Jun was also sentenced to 12 strokes of the cane.

Most of Aw's sentence was for possessing cannabis for the purpose of trafficking, and he also admitted to have possessed methamphetamine and consumed meth.

Another five charges were taken into consideration during sentencing. Aw was noted as a "repeat offender".

Friends

Aw was arrested on Aug. 6, 2024, by Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) officers while awaiting further instructions from the co-accused, 32-year-old Hidayatullah Taruna Jaya Taruna.

The pair who are friends, had known each other since 2022.

CNA reported that according to Aw's defence lawyer, Aw knew Hidayatullah through an acquaintance whom Aw met in a reformative training centre.

Knew 'book' contained cannabis

Hidayatullah had asked for Aw's help via WhatsApp on the night on Aug. 5, 2024.

He requested Aw's assistance in collecting a "book", deliver it to his friend the following day, and collect cash in return.

Court documents stated that Aw knew the book referred to cannabis.

The next morning on Aug. 6, 2024, Hidayatullah sent photographs and a video via WhatsApp to Aw, to guide him on where to collect the "book" from.

Arrested

Aw then went to a staircase of a lift lobby in a Ang Mo Kio public housing block, where he saw the bag containing cannabis placed behind a "wet/dry riser".

He then retrieved it and awaited further instructions from Hidayatullah on where to meet his friend.

On the same day at about 2:20pm, CNB officers, acting on information received, conducted a raid at the public housing unit where Aw was, and arrested him.

The CNB officers recovered from Aw one block containing at least 459.2g of cannabis, which is a Class A controlled drug.

Officers also recovered packets of meth from Aw, whose urine tested positive for the drug that he consumed prior to his arrest.

CNA reported that since Aw had previously been convicted in March 2021 of consuming and trafficking meth, this made him a repeat offender liable for enhanced punishment.

Prosecution arguments

Court documents stated that the prosecution sought a global sentence of 16 years and 10 months to 19 years, as well as 12 to 13 strokes of the cane.

For first-time offenders, the mandatory minimum sentence for possessing at least 329.9 g of cannabis for the purpose of trafficking is five years' jail and five strokes of the cane, according to court documents.

It added that the maximum sentence is 20 years' jail and 15 strokes of the cane.

Aw, who was a repeat offender, was liable for a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years' jail and 10 strokes of the cane.

Court documents stated the maximum sentence to be 30 years' jail and 15 strokes of the cane.

Defence arguments

CNA reported that Aw's lawyer, Johnathan Lee, asked for leniency and a penalty of between 14 and 10 months' jail and 17 years and 10 months' jail, as well as 12 strokes of the cane.

Lee, who had taken on the case under the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme, said Aw was of "modest background and limited education".

Noting that Aw's father has died and his mother was estranged from him since he was around three years old, Lee said Aw's younger brother had recently been released with a tag for drug-related offences.

He added that Aw was close to his grandmother, who lives with his aunt, CNA reported.

According to CNA, Lee also told the court that Aw, who had previously been a bartender, was remanded since August 2024 as no one had been in a position to be his bailor.

Noting that Aw had "candidly" admitted to his offences after being arrested, Lee argued that Aw still had room for reform and asked for a lenient sentence to improve his employment prospects and help him reintegrate into society.

Hidayatullah's case is pending, CNA reported.