Australian golfer convicted for cocaine use

TOKYO — A Japanese court has handed down a suspended sentence to Australian golfer Wayne Perske for possessing and using cocaine.

Masaaki Ono, an official at the Chiba District Court, said the 36-year-old golfer received a year and six months in prison, suspended for three years.

Perske was arrested in October after inhaling cocaine at a bar in Chiba, east of Tokyo, and carrying some 1.25 grams of cocaine in his pocket. A customer at the bar alerted police, leading officers to search and arrest him.

Japan has strict anti-drug laws. Possession of banned drugs can carry a penalty of up to seven years imprisonment.