HKSAR v. TSANG FAN HONG

DCCC 1157/2008

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

CRIMINAL CASE NO. 1157 OF 2008

BETWEEN

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Reasons for sentence

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1.      The defendant pleads guilty to one count of trafficking in a dangerous drug involving 10.47g of a mixture containing 8.11g of heroin hydrochloride[1].

2.      The defendant was intercepted by two plainclothes police officers at about 2 a.m. outside No. 1A, Yim Po Fong St., Mong Kok. The dangerous drug was found from the left front pocket of his jeans. There were a total of 45 packets put inside a cigarette box. He admitted possession under caution at the scene. The street value of the seized drug was about $8,543.

3.       The defendant is 49 years old. He has 3 previous convictions. He last served a term of 6 months imprisonment in 1999 for a copyright offence. He is not a drug addict.

4.      The defendant has a common law wife, a son (16) and a daughter (13). He is a casual construction site worker earning about $7,000 a month. He has to support his family and his elderly mother. The defendant was in financial difficulties at the time of the offence as there was insufficient work. He was approached by someone to deliver the drug for a reward of a few hundred dollars. He was intercepted during his first attempt as a courier. He is now remorseful. There is nothing special in his background which deserves further leniency.

5.      I bear in mind the tariff set down in The Queen v Lau Tak Ming [1990] 2 HKLR 370. The sentence for trafficking in 8.11g of heroin hydrochloride should be in the region of 2 to 5 years.

6.      Having considered the circumstances of the defendant and the amount of drug found, I take 54 months as the starting point, one-third discount for his plea, I sentence him to 36 months imprisonment.

[1] Contrary to s.4 (1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, Cap 134.