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Former War Correspondent on Trial in Indonesia for Hashish

by Associated Press

   BALI, INDONESIA --

   A former Reuters war correspondent on trial in Indonesia on charges of
   possessing hashish faces up to four years in prison, a prosecutor said
   Thursday.

   David Fox, a British national, was arrested Oct. 8 along with
   Australian Giuseppe Serafino on the tourist island of Bali. Police said
   they confiscated a total of 10.09 grams (0.36 ounces) of hashish from
   Fox's clothing and house.

   He is being tried at the Denpasar District Court, where prosecutor
   Erawati Susina said he could face a maximum four years in prison.
   Serafino is being tried separately and faces the same possible
   sentence.

   Police said Fox, 55, told them he had used the drug for years to
   overcome stress caused by covering conflicts.

   He worked for Reuters for 20 years but was fired in 2011 for making an
   off-color remark in an instant-messaging system while covering the 2011
   Japan tsunami and nuclear meltdowns.

   Bali police first raided the house of Serafino in Sanur, a beachside
   town and resort area, where they reportedly seized 7.32 grams (0.26
   ounces) of hashish. His arrest led to the detention of Fox at a bar run
   by Serafino.

   Serafino, 49, told police he had used the drug since 2007 after being
   diagnosed with lip cancer.

   Indonesia has extremely strict drug laws and convicted smugglers are
   often executed. More than 150 people are on death row, mostly for drug
   crimes. About a third of them are foreigners.

   Eighteen people convicted of drug-related offenses, mostly foreigners,
   have been executed since President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo took office in
   October 2014.