Bail review ruling for Chinese drug case deferred to Friday

The Suva Magistrate Court has deferred its ruling on the bail application for three Chinese nationals charged with drug-related offences until Friday.

Yu Yuan Feng, Dai Ming Hui, and Zhou Lan appeared before Resident Magistrate Vinaina Diroiroi yesterday.

They are jointly charged with unlawful possession of 39.5 grams of methamphetamine.

Zhou and Dai face additional charges of possessing over $7,000 in local and foreign currency suspected to be proceeds of crime.

The court ordered the defence to file sureties’ affidavits by December 2 to assess the suitability of proposed bail guarantors.

Defence lawyer Shirley Tivao informed the court that one of her clients’ fathers is terminally ill in China, and she intends to apply for an early trial date.

Ms Tivao also raised concerns about her clients’ confiscated mobile phones, stating they need access to banking apps to send money to their families in China and manage expenses in Fiji.

She told the court that one client’s wife has flown in from China and requested the phones be released to her to facilitate financial transactions.

State prosecutors Hezekiah Nofaga and Samisoni Eoghn have filed an application to consolidate this case with two other related methamphetamine cases pending before another Magistrate Court.

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