HKSAR v. CORREA CRUZ LUIS ELIDER

HCCC 63/2015

IN THE HIGH COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE

CRIMINAL CASE NO 63 OF 2015

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Transcript of the Audio Recording
of the Sentence in the above Case

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

You have admitted, on 26 July 2014, at the Hong Kong International Airport, in Hong Kong, you unlawfully trafficked in 1,270 grammes of powder containing 908 grammes of cocaine. On that day, you had arrived in Hong Kong on a flight from Colombia. You were intercepted by the Customs at the Customs Clearance Hall. The suitcase you were carrying was then opened for examination. After examination, it was revealed that there were a total of nine packets of the drugs found in two false compartments on each side of the suitcase. The amount of drugs was as stated in the charge.

You had in your possession at that time, amongst other things, foreign currency, namely US$1,595, HK$708.30, 47,100 Colombian pesos and 8.65 Brazilian real.

The street value of the drugs was estimated to be HK$1,332,230.

Defendant, you are a Colombian citizen and a national. You were born and raised in Colombia. You are 60 years of age and are of clear record. Mr Dunn, your counsel, has mitigated on your behalf and I have taken into account what he has had to say. You are a single man having never been married before. You were working in Colombia as a messenger, earning US$15 a month. Mr Dunn has informed this court that, as a baby, you were abandoned by your parents. You were brought up by a neighbour and only received education up to primary 1.

You were tempted by this offer to bring these drugs to Hong Kong; given your low education, no family and no prospects. The amount of money offered to you seemed to be a huge amount. You therefore succumbed to the temptation. Mr Dunn has indicated that, given your age and the fact that you will be receiving a long prison term as a result of the commission of this offence, you will be out of prison when you are in your 70’s.

Your strongest mitigating factor is, of course, your plea of guilty. Although, as Mr Dunn says, this did not come at the time you were interviewed by the Customs officers, after your arrest, it has nevertheless come at this earliest opportunity.

Defendant, the Court of Appeal in Hong Kong has laid down tariffs or guidelines when sentencing for trafficking in cocaine. The relevant cases are Lau Tak Ming and Abdallah Anwar Abbas. The guidelines starting point for traffickers after trial, subject to any enhancement was laid down in Abdallah Anwar Abbas. For the amounts of 600 to 1,200 grammes, a term of imprisonment of between 20 to 23 years’ imprisonment are appropriate.

Defendant, given the amount of drugs that you were trafficking in, and taking into account the guidelines laid down, had you been convicted after trial, an appropriate starting point would be one of 21 years and 6 months’ imprisonment.

There is an aggravating factor in this case as there is an international element involved in that you had come from Colombia and brought these drugs into Hong Kong. This aggravating factor calls for an enhancement of the starting point and, as laid down in Abbas, the enhancement for amounts above 1 kilogramme will not be less than 2 years’ imprisonment.

In those circumstances, the starting point will be enhanced by 2 years, taking the sentencing point to be 23 years and 6 months’ imprisonment.

You guilty plea deserves a full one-third discount and in taking that into account, you shall be sentenced to 15 years and 8 months’ imprisonment.