HKSAR v. NG TSZ KIN

DCCC1143/2011

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

CRIMINAL CASE NO. 1143 OF 2011

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Reasons for Sentence

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1.  The defendant has pleaded guilty to one charge on an indictment alleging he trafficked in what is totally 74.26 grammes of ketamine and 3.27 grammes of cocaine.

2.  The facts agreed by the defendant establish that the offence was committed on 31 August 2011 in the Shun Tin Estate of Kowloon.

3.  The defendant was a driver of a private car and was intercepted by police after he had parked the car in the Shun Tin Estate in Kowloon.

4.  On a search of the defendant, nothing was found, but subsequently the car was searched, and found in the glove compartment were 15 resealable plastic bags containing the ketamine and 17 resealable plastic bags containing the cocaine.

5.  The defendant, on arrest and caution, admitted to trafficking in the drugs because he owed others a $100,000 gambling debt and was unable to repay it.

6.  In his video interview which occurred later, he said he worked for a person called “Fai Bo” and he was to place drugs into a flower bed for a reward of $2,000.

7.  The street value of the ketamine is $17,952 and the street value of the cocaine is $5,833.

8.  The defendant is aged 29 years.  He has two convictions.  He was placed on probation for possession of infringing copies as far back as 1999 and was fined on the same occasion.  Since then, there are no convictions.

9.  He was unemployed at the time of his arrest.  He lives with his father and sister, and I am told in mitigation that he could find work as a driver for about $8,000 per month.  He makes contributions to his family when he is in employment.

10.  In his antecedents, he admitted that he was addicted to cocaine and ketamine for about 10 years, and the defendant committed this offence in order to repay money on a gambling debt.

11.  The courts in sentencing in these matters are subject to guidelines.

12.  There are two drugs involved here, and for the amount of ketamine, this lies in the range of between 50 to 300 grammes of ketamine and the sentencing for trafficking for that quantity is between 6 to 9 years’ imprisonment.  For the cocaine, that lies in the band of up to 10 grammes, where the sentence is between 2 to 5 years’ imprisonment.

13.  Obviously, in terms of sentencing, the ketamine is the predominant drug being trafficked, and in my view, to take what is described as the combined approach towards sentencing would not, again, in my view, significantly alter the sentence.

14.  Given the guidelines, I will take a starting point for sentence in this charge of one of 6 years and 3 months’ imprisonment; that is, 75 months’ imprisonment.

15.  The defendant is entitled to a one-third discount in sentence which will be 25 months, leaving a total sentence of 50 months’ imprisonment.