Freed unexpectedly from death row, Lukman sets sights on religious studies

MALAYSIANSKINI | On Dec 7, 2015, the world of Muhammad Lukman Mohamad was turned upside down. The engineer was arrested along with his then-pregnant wife for possessing, processing and distributing cannabis oil.

Even though she was released in May 2016,  Lukman (above) was sentenced to death on Aug 30, 2018 under the Dangerous Drugs Act  for possession of 3.1 litres of cannabis oil, 279g of compressed cannabis and 1.4kg of substances containing tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

But a month ago on Feb 17, it all turned around when a three-member Federal Court bench led by Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat allowed his appeal to set aside his conviction on two counts of drug trafficking.

They substituted the charges to possession under Section 9 of the Dangerous Drugs Act (DDA) and sentenced him to five years in jail on each charge and which are to run concurrently from the date of his arrest.

And because the Court of Appeal last year reduced the third charge to one of possession and sentenced Lukman to seven years’ jail and 10 strokes of the cane, he was deemed to have completed his jail term with a one-third remission.

The caning was administered and Lukman was freed that night itself and taken to his sister's house in Kota Bharu to rest and receive treatment.

After two weeks, he moved to his hometown in Besut, Terengganu where he is still recuperating. Yesterday, a month on from that emotional day, Lukman shared his story with Malaysiakini.