DENPASAR: An American man and two Kazakh nationals face the death penalty for alleged drug crimes on the popular Indonesian resort island of Bali, authorities said Thursday, the latest cases in a nation with some of the world's toughest narcotics laws.

Indonesia hands out severe punishments for drug smuggling and has previously executed foreigners, but has upheld a moratorium on the death sentence since 2017.

American national William Wallace Molyneaux was arrested on May 23, allegedly carrying seven packages containing 99 pills of amphetamine, Bali's narcotics agency told reporters in Denpasar.

Molyneaux has multiple charges levelled against him including distributing drugs, which carries the maximum penalty of death by execution.

Two Kazakh men were also arrested in April with around 49 grams of crystal meth, allegedly intending to drop it off as part of a drug deal.

They were accused of transacting drugs, a charge that carries the death sentence as the maximum penalty.