A South Korean national appeared at the Phnom Penh Municipal Court yesterday, eight months after he was arrested on drug trafficking charges.

Kang Mun Cheol, 58, has been in prison since police arrested him at a petrol station in the capital in December for carrying a bag containing crystal meth.

Kang claimed he did not know there were drugs in the bag, which also contained three boxes of biscuits. The police said a fourth box held 24.49 grams of crystal meth.

Kang said a Chinese friend had told him to bring it to the petrol station.

“When I got to the petrol station, the police arrested me,” he said.

Kang’s lawyer, In Sok Po, requested a light sentence, saying his client had cooperated with police and helped them bust two other trafficking cases.

However Judge Lim Makaron said that simply proved the defendant had been lying about not being involved in the drugs trade.

“I made a mistake,” Kang said in his closing remarks. “I will not do it again.”

The verdict is due on 25 August.