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3 Mexican brothers lose final appeal in Malaysia against death sentence for drug trafficking

Associated Press
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Jose Regino, third from right, and Luis Alfonso Gonzalez, right in white, two of three Mexican brothers convicted of manufacturing drugs, are taken into a prison van at appeals court in Putrajaya, Malaysia, Thursday, April 23, 2015. The court upheld a decision to sentence the three Mexican brothers to death for drug related offences. The three were arrested in March 2008 at a factory in southern Malaysia where police found 30 kilograms (66 pounds) of methamphetamine worth US$15 million and equipment to make drugs. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul) The ruling was made following an appeal by the defence team representing the three men. After the ruling, head defence lawyer Hisham the said that they will seriously consider filing for a judicial review in the case. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul) (The Associated Press)

Luis Alfonso Gonzalez, in white, one of three Mexican brothers convicted of manufacturing drugs, is taken into a prison van at appeals court in Putrajaya, Malaysia, Thursday, April 23, 2015. The court upheld a decision to sentence the three Mexican brothers to death for drug related offences. The three were arrested in March 2008 at a factory in southern Malaysia where police found 30 kilograms (66 pounds) of methamphetamine worth US$15 million and equipment to make drugs. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul) The ruling was made following an appeal by the defence team representing the three men. After the ruling, head defence lawyer Hisham the said that they will seriously consider filing for a judicial review in the case. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul) (The Associated Press)

Three Mexican brothers and two other people have lost their final appeals against death sentences for drug trafficking in Malaysia.

The Mexicans are from Sinaloa state, the cradle of their country's drug trade, but have no criminal record at home. They were arrested at a secluded drug-making factory in Malaysia in 2008, and claimed they had been cleaning the place, not making drugs.

Their lawyer Kitson Foong says a five-man bench in the Federal Court, Malaysia's highest court, unanimously rejected their appeal Thursday. The defense has argued that the evidence was tampered with.

Foong says his clients may seek a judicial review of the court's decision.

The other defendants are a Singaporean and a Malaysian.