Perth teenager Jamie Murphy has walked free from a Kuta lockup just 48 hours after he was arrested at a nightclub, allegedly with a packet of white powder in his bag.
At around 1:00am on Tuesday morning, the 18-year-old was confronted by nightclub security guards who searched his bumbag and allegedly found a small bag of white powder.
"It is not drugs," Bali’s police chief, Inspector General Sugeng Priyanto, said on Wednesday night when Murphy was released.
Murphy was "very lucky" he had purchased a combination of paracetamol, caffeine, cold and flu medication, and cough medication from a street dealer, Sumara said.
"I don't want to say whether he is stupid or not," Sumara said. “If someone sells you drugs, don’t try to buy, because Indonesian police will process according to the Indonesian law. This is especially for my friends, the Schoolies."
"Regarding the complaints we received about the apparent rough treatment of Jamie by our security at the mobile police station, we would like to extend our sincere apology to Jamie, his family, and friends," the management of the Sky Garden nightclub said in a statement.
"We have reprimanded the security in question, and he will not be permitted to come back to work until he has completed and passed another round of police security training."
Murphy's lawyer, Desi Widiantari, said the teenager would fly home to Australia "right away" with his parents, Brendan and Anna, who flew to Bali earlier in the day.
Bali police said it was "the first time" suspected drugs had tested completely negative for illicit substances.
The maximum penalty for drug possession under five grams is 12 years in jail.