Swiss man nabbed after neighbours spot marijuana plant on windowsill

swiss man
A photograph shared on Facebook by Panglao police showing the arrest of Swiss citizen Maik Kruesi for possession of a single marijuana plant.

A Swiss man has been arrested in Panglao after his neighbours reported seeing a marijuana plant growing on his windowsill.

Maik Kruesi, aged 32, was arrested in Barangay Danao on Thursday, December 27. Senior Inspector Neon Alvarez, Panglao police chief, said operatives raided Kruesi’s apartment and seized the potted plant after tip offs from neighbours.

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Photographs of the operation shared on the local police’s Facebook page show several uniformed officers and a number of apparent civilians involved in the raid.

Sr. Insp. Alvarez said that Kruesi cooperated with authorities as he was taken into custody. The Swiss man told police that the two-foot tall plant’s seedling was given to him by a friend and that he did not know it was marijuana.

Police have submitted the plant to the crime laboratory and Kruesi will be charged if it is confirmed to be marijuana.

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Commenting on his arrest, many netizens have expressed amusement and surprise that he would keep the plant in public view. Others have suggested that because the plant appears to be a male of the species, it wouldn’t have any narcotic effect anyway.

Kruesi’s arrest came on the same day as a 38-year-old Polish man was arrested for possession of marijuana on Siquijor Island.

As we previously reported, Piotr Galewski was taken into detention after a 5am raid on his residence by anti-narcotics police supported by a SWAT team.  

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Although not yet confirmed, the charges against the two men are likely to be under section 11 (possession of dangerous drugs) of Republic Act 9165. If found guilty of possessing more than five grams of the drug, they could face life imprisonment.

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