HKSAR v. CHAN MAN TAK

DCCC781/2010

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

CRIMINAL CASE NO. 781 OF 2010

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Reasons for Sentence

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1.  Defendant, you have pleaded guilty to an offence of trafficking in a dangerous drug, contrary to section 4(1)(a) and (3) of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance.

2.  You have admitted that on 24 March 2005 in a private car, registration number LW 2438, outside No.11 Hip Yan Street, Sha Tin, New Territories, Hong Kong, you unlawfully trafficked in 16.45 grammes of a solid containing 12.14 grammes of cocaine.

3.  On 24 March 2005, at around 4.45 pm, at the address as I mention, Hip Yan Street, police officers conducting anti-narcotic operations intercepted the vehicle LW 2438 which was driven by a male called Chan Kim-ho with yourself sitting on board at the front passenger seat. 

4.  Officers searched the vehicle and found inside the vehicle the following items: inside the storage compartment near the handbrake, 2 pieces of tissue containing 2 plastic bags containing cocaine; inside the storage compartment of the door of the driver seat, 13 plastic bags which contained cocaine; inside a paper bag on the floor of the front passenger seat were a glass tube and a plastic bag containing 28.93 grammes of soda powder, an electronic scale and 123 empty transparent resealable plastic bags. 

5.  Under caution, you admitted that all the cocaine that was seized belonged to you.  In a subsequent record of interview, defendant, you admitted that you purchased one ounce of cocaine from a friend named Ah Wai about half a month before your arrest for $7,000.

6.  You had placed and kept all the cocaine in the vehicle which was borrowed from your friend earlier that day.  The electronic scale was for measuring cocaine and the transparent plastic bags were used for storing the cocaine.  The 28.93 grammes seized were soda powder which would be used for mixing with the cocaine for easier consumption. 

7.  It was an admitted fact that the quantity of cocaine seized could have been sold at street value level to drug abusers for $14,443 at the material time.

8.  This offence was committed 5 years ago from today.  At the material time of your arrest, you were released on police bail and were expected to report back on 25 May 2005.  However, you left Hong Kong on 20 May 2005 and failed to report back to the police. 

9.  On 22 May 2010 you surrendered yourself at the Sha Tin Police Station and had been kept in custody since that date. 

10.  Mr Cheng, your counsel, has mitigated fully on your behalf today and I have taken into account all that he has had to say. 

11.  You are aged 32 and have two previous convictions, one of which was for possession of dangerous drugs in 2003 to which you were sentenced to 180 hours of community service.  At the date of commission of this offence, I work out that you were aged 27. 

12.  You are single but have a daughter aged 6 with your girlfriend.  When you absconded and left Hong Kong, you went to live in Malaysia.  And since your return, I believe you lived with your mother and brothers. 

13.  I am informed by your counsel, Mr Cheng, that you were concerned and worried that for this offence you would be facing a lengthy term of imprisonment and for that reason you absconded.  However, after the years have passed, you realized that you would have to face up to your term and therefore surrendered yourself and are prepared to face imprisonment.

14.  Mr Cheng has informed me that he has advised you and explained to you the relevant tariff for trafficking in cocaine and you understand that you will face an immediate period of imprisonment.

15.  As you knew and realized, trafficking in dangerous drugs is a very serious offence.  The Court of Appeal has laid down clear guidelines for the courts to follow when offences of trafficking are committed.  The larger the quantity of drugs, of course the heavier the penalty. 

16.  What appears to me here, clearly, is that you were using the vehicle as a mobile trafficking centre.  Although it appears that you said in your initial caution it was for your own consumption, clearly the facts were obvious that this was other than for your own consumption but for trafficking.  You were in possession of all the apparatus pointing to trafficking such as scales, plastic bags and a good quantity of drugs.

17.  The drugs were in fact contained in 15 separate plastic bags.  The quantity of drugs involved was 12.14 grammes of cocaine.  In following the guidelines of Lau Tak Ming, that falls within the second bracket of 10 to 50 grammes of drugs which an appropriate sentence of 5 to 8 years of imprisonment is appropriate. 

18.  Defendant given the quantity of drugs you had, had I convicted you after trial, I would have taken a starting point of 5 years’ imprisonment.  However, taking into account your plea of guilty, that term should be reduced to 3 years and 4 months’ imprisonment.

19.  Defendant, you are most fortunate that you were not charged with any other offence of jumping bail, but you could have been because in law you have jumped court bail.  But I am not in any way taking that as an aggravating factor in imposing a heavier penalty upon you.