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A Malaysian court acquitted on Tuesday a French national who had faced a possible death sentence on eight drug-related charges, freeing him after nearly two and a half years in detention.”I’m happy to be out,” a grinning Tom Felix briefly told AFP after the ruling by the High Court in the northern city of Alor Setar. Earlier in the day, a judge ruled that prosecutors failed to prove that Felix, 34, had control, custody or possession of the drugs in the case.”The accused is, therefore, released and acquitted,” Judge Evawani Farisyta Mohammad said.

Felix, in court wearing a white shirt and trousers, his hands cuffed, looked visibly pleased as the judge delivered the decision. His parents, Jean Luc and Sylvie Felix, embraced after the ruling.”We are very happy, relieved. It’s finally the end of a nightmare, and we are so happy,” Sylvie Felix told AFP.”We are very grateful that we are supported by all our family and that now that he’s acquitted… we (will) try to make his return (to France) safe and fast.”Felix is expected to fly back to France in the coming days.- ‘Long nightmare’ -“This is the end of a very long nightmare for Tom, who had lived through the hell of an unjust accusation and an undignified detention,” Felix’s lawyer Francois Zimeray told AFP.

His family “held strong against the temptation of despair”, he added. French President Emmanuel Macron said there was “immense relief”.”My thoughts are especially with his parents, whom I had met, who never stopped believing and who will now be reunited with their son,” Macron posted on X. Felix, still in the custody of Malaysian immigration but expected to be freed within days, was with his parents on Tuesday afternoon at an immigration office in Alor Setar.

Felix, a former Veolia executive, and his Malaysian business partner were detained in 2023 after police discovered 1.86 kilograms of cannabis in the common area of a home they shared. Authorities later said Felix was also found in possession of 11.7 grams of the drug. He denied all the charges. If convicted, Felix faced the death penalty or a cumulative sentence of 104 years in prison, 54 strokes of the cane and a $31,000 fine, his mother previously told AFP.

Drug trafficking and possession are serious offences in Malaysia, which still allows capital punishment for cases involving large quantities of narcotics. However, death sentences are no longer mandatory, and no executions have been carried out since 2018.

Tue, 03 Feb 2026 12:02:48 GMT