HKSAR v. TONG KAR SHING

DCCC639/2010

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

CRIMINAL CASE NO. 639 OF 2010

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Reasons for Sentence

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

2.  You admitted that on 22 April 2010 at the staircase on the 14th floor of Wan Lam House, Wan Tau Tong Estate, Tai Po, New Territories, you unlawfully trafficked in 19.8 grammes of a mixture containing 8.14 grammes of heroin hydrochloride which is a dangerous drug.

3.  On the day in question police officers were conducting an operation in Wan Lam House.  At about 2.40 pm that day police officers saw you coming out of your home and walk towards the rear staircase.  Your demeanour was suspicious as you repeatedly looked backwards when walking along the corridor.  The officer saw you open the hose reel case situated at the corridor and take something out of there and put it into the front pockets of your shorts.  You then walked quickly downstairs.  The officer then intercepted you and revealed his identity.  You reacted by pushing the officer with both hands, you then took out a transparent plastic bag from your front shorts pocket and threw it onto the street.

4.  The officer conducted a search on you and found 70 packets of drugs from the left front pocket of your shorts contained in a transparent plastic bag.  At the street level of Wan Lam House a transparent bag containing 57 packets of drugs was retrieved and further 13 packets of drugs were retrieved from about approximately 10 centimetres to where that plastic bag was located. 

5.  You were arrested and you were in possession of cash to the value of $980.

6.  In total, there were 140 packets of drugs found and the police estimated the street value of the drug was approximately $6,800.

7.  Mr Chan, your solicitor, has made very full and thorough mitigation on your behalf and I have taken into account all that he has had to say.

8.  You are aged 21 and have one previous criminal record of assault occasioning actual bodily harm committed in January 2008 to which you were sentenced to probation of 12 months and ordered to pay compensation of $1,000. 

9.  Mr Chan has pleaded for your leniency in view of your young age, your plea of guilty and the mitigating letters written by yourself and your parents.  The mitigation put forward is that you were at that time out of a moment of greed, wanted to earn quick money and therefore committed this very serious offence and you were to be paid $500 for this delivery.  You at that time were earning a monthly sum of $3,000 and therefore you committed this offence.  Your parents are not particularly high-income earners, earning between $6,000 and $5,000, and therefore rely upon you for contribution to the family.

10.  As you recognize, this offence is a very serious offence.  The Court of Appeal has laid down tariffs for trafficking in dangerous drugs.  It is clear that the appropriate sentence is one of an immediate custodial sentence and that depending on the quantity of drugs that you trafficked in would depend on the length of sentence you receive.

11.  As your solicitor, Mr Chan, rightly pointed out, for this quantity of drugs, of heroin involved, the tariff of up to 10 grammes of heroin is a sentence of between 2 to 5 years’ imprisonment as set out by R v Lau Tak Ming, as you had trafficked in 8.14 grammes of heroin hydrochloride.

12.  I am pleased to see from your letter you have written to the court that you have realized your wrongdoing and reflected upon the support of your family and also the fact that you have come clean and admitted your guilt.  I trust that you yourself are sincere in saying you have learned a lesson from this crime and after you serve your term of imprisonment that you will keep to your promise and become a responsible son and member of society.

13.  You are a very young man, aged 21.  You have a lifetime ahead of you.  You are very fortunate to have such a supportive family.  Do not throw that away.  It appears to me in your youth you were looking like you were on the right track, as Mr Chan tells me that you had joined the Junior Police Call.  I am not sure where you went wrong, but obviously you went seriously wrong for just $500, you have committed an extremely serious offence to which you will lose your liberty for a long time.

14.  I am sure that you know that quick money almost always means something not right or more likely than not illegal.  You can see your parents and your sister and yourself working so hard.  Nothing in life comes quick or easy.  If it does, you know something is wrong.  You have learned the hard way.  You have a long time to reflect upon this.

15.  In sentencing you, I shall follow the guidelines as laid down in Lau Tak Ming.  Had I convicted you after trial, I would have taken a starting point of 4 years’ imprisonment.  However, you have pleaded guilty and I give you full credit for your plea of guilty and reduce that term to one of 2 years 8 months’ imprisonment to which you shall be so sentenced.