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DCCC190/2010
IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE
HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION
CRIMINAL CASE NO. 190 OF 2010
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Before:
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H H Judge S D'Almada Remedios
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Date:
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6 August 2010 at 12.38 pm
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Present:
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Mr Cheng Sin-tsing, Lenny, PP of the Department of Justice, for HKSAR
Mr Cheung Kin-bor, Michael, instructed by Philip K H Wong, Kennedy Y H Wong & Co, for the Defendant
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Offence:
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Trafficking in a dangerous drug (販運危險藥物)
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Reasons for Sentence
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1. Defendant, I convicted you after the trial of an offence of trafficking in a dangerous drug, contrary to section 4(1)(a) and (3) of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance.
2. I found that on 6 November 2009, outside Room 2417, On Yet House, Shun On Estate, Lee On Road, Sau Mau Ping, Kowloon, you unlawfully trafficked in a dangerous drug, namely 27.74 grammes of a solid containing 16.32 grammes of cocaine.
3. At about 7.35 pm on that day, you had just left your house and immediately outside your house, which was the premises in the charge, you were stopped by the police and the drugs were found in your jeans pocket.
4. You were arrested for trafficking and cautioned, and you replied the cocaine was for your own consumption, and as you were caught red-handed, you had nothing more to say.
5. I rejected your case that you were taking the drugs to be stored in the letterbox downstairs and that the drugs were for your own consumption.
6. I found the price of the drugs were far in excess of your affordability, and the quantity was far greater than was required for your alleged drug dependency.
7. I found that you were trafficking in these drugs.
8. Your counsel has mitigated on your behalf before me today. He has asked for leniency as you have a young family and you wish to reunite with them as soon as possible.
9. You are aged 35, and have 21 previous convictions. Four of them are for possession of a dangerous drug; four of them are similar convictions of trafficking in a dangerous drug.
10. Your last conviction was for trafficking in a dangerous drug. There were two charges, to which you received 5 years’ imprisonment on one charge and 6 years’ imprisonment on the other charge, and a total term of 6 years’ imprisonment.
11. You are not new to the courts in Hong Kong. I am sure you are well aware that for trafficking in dangerous drugs, the Court of Appeal have laid down very clear tariffs and guidelines.
12. The drugs involved in this case are that of cocaine.
13. The court has laid down the tariffs in the case of Lau Tak Ming. The amount of drugs in this case that you had was 16.32 grammes of cocaine. That means that the amount falls within the second band of Lau Tak Ming between 10 and 50 grammes, which warrants a term of between 5 and 8 years' imprisonment after trial.
14. I have convicted you after trial, and in those circumstances in following the tariffs and guidelines, I sentence you to 5 years’ imprisonment.
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(S D'Almada Remedios)
District Judge |
Application for leave to appeal against sentence allowed. See CACC294/2010 dated 19 October 2011 |