|
HCCC295/2008
IN THE HIGH COURT OF THE
HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION
COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE
CRIMINAL CASE NO. 295 OF 2008
----------------------
----------------------
Before Deputy High Court Judge Lugar-Mawson
Date: 13 February 2009 at 9.49 am
|
Present:
|
Ms June Cheung, SPP of the Department of Justice, for HKSAR
Mr James McGowan, instructed by the Legal Aid Department, for the Accused
|
Offence: Trafficking in a dangerous drug (販運危險藥物)
Transcript of the Audio Recording
of the Sentence in the above case
COURT: Chan Kin-pong, as I am sure Mr McGowan has told you, there are very heavy penalties prescribed by law for those who in any way engage in trafficking in a dangerous drug. It is a vicious, nasty trade. It is controlled by ruthless, unscrupulous and evil men, men who have no respect for other human beings or their lives or their well-being, and who are prepared to treat them mercilessly.
You yourself to some extent have been a victim of such evil men, because clearly you were set up. You were set up as the one to be caught when no doubt a bigger consignment of drugs had been brought in by somebody else, the idea being to distract the police by concentrating their attentions on you. Having said that, you engaged in this filthy trade willingly and for gain.
It is to be regretted that you have a deep-seated gambling habit, though that is not and never can be an excuse for engaging in criminal acts.
There is mitigation in your case. You are of hitherto clear record, and you pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity when this case came before a magistrate, and you will receive due recognition for that.
From what Mr McGowan has told me, it is clear to me that he has explained to you that there are very clear guidelines laid down for all judges in Hong Kong as to how we should sentence people who traffic in dangerous drugs, including ketamine.
He will also have explained to you, I am quite sure, that judges are expected to stick to those guidelines unless there are very strong reasons why we should not do so, and I regret to have to tell you that in your case I can see no strong reasons why I should or could depart from those guidelines. As I have said, they have been set by the Court of Appeal, and I am expected to follow them.
Taking into account what I have been told about you and your offence, and taking into account that the active narcotic content of the ketamine in which you trafficked was 751.13 grammes, had you taken this matter to trial and been found guilty by a jury, the most lenient sentence you could have expected to have received from me would have been a sentence of 12 years' imprisonment.
I am taking that as the starting point from which I calculate your sentence. As I said I would, I am taking account of and giving due recognition to your clear record and your early plea of guilty. I am reducing your sentence by one-third from what it would have been had a jury found you guilty. That means that your sentence for this offence is one of 8 years' imprisonment.
|