HKSAR v. HUI MAN FUNG

DCCC502/2011

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

CRIMINAL CASE NO. 502 OF 2011

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Reasons for Sentence

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

2.  You have admitted that on 1 December 2010, outside Room 908, Peony House East Block at Pok Man Street, Tai Kok Tsui,   you unlawfully trafficked in dangerous drugs, namely 2.90 grammes of a crystalline solid containing 2.84 grammes of methamphetamine hydrochloride, otherwise known as “Ice”, 1.58 grammes of a solid containing 1.04 grammes of cocaine, 0.42 grammes of a powder containing 0.31 grammes of ketamine, 0.30 grammes of cannabis in herbal form and one tablet containing 6 milligrammes of nimetazepam.

3.  On 1 December 2010, a team of police officers were conducting an anti-dangerous drugs operation at Pok Man Street, Tai Kok Tsui, Kowloon.  They laid ambush on the 9th Floor of Peony House East Block.  At about 4.00 pm, the officer saw you pushing open the fire door and walking towards Room 908 of that Block in a furtive manner.  Room 908 was in fact your residence.  You were intercepted outside your residence and a body search was made on you.    

4.  Upon search a total of 12 transparent resealable plastic bags of the drugs were found in your left trousers pocket.  Those drugs were the drugs as mentioned in the charge sheet. In addition inside your right rear trousers’ pocket pocket was found an electronic scale. 

5.  The officers then went on to search your residence upon the execution of their search warrant, but nothing of suspicion was found.  The police estimated that the street value of all the drugs found upon you was $3,525.  You admitted the drugs found upon you were for the purpose of trafficking. 

6.  Mr Kenneth Chan, counsel, has mitigated fully and thoroughly on your behalf before me and I have taken into account all that he has had to say. 

7.  You are 29 years of age and have 9 previous convictions, none of which are similar.  The last conviction is one of possession of dangerous drugs which was committed after the commission of this offence.  In short Mr Chan’s main mitigation is that the strongest factor is of course your plea of guilty.  Through your plea, you have saved the court’s time and also shown your remorse.

8.  In respect of the drugs involved, he submits that the drugs are not in a very large quantity, being only $3,500 worth of drugs and asks the court to take into account the two more severe drugs which are “Ice” and cocaine and ignore the less potent of drugs such as ketamine, cannabis and nimetazepam.  In Inspector Louis’s statement the street value of these less potent drugs is approximately $50 or less of each type of drug. 

9.  As rightly pointed out by Mr Chan, there are five different types of drugs involved in this charge.  The court in viewing sentence would take a combined approach in sentencing for these five different types of drugs.  Therefore, I will take into account the more serious drugs of “Ice” and cocaine, which I shall calculate, and in respect of the other drugs I consider to be more minor I shall ignore those quantities of less serious drugs. 

10.  For trafficking in “Ice” and following the guideline as laid down in Ching Kwok Hung of 2.84 grammes, an appropriate starting point had you been convicted after trial would have been a sentence of 4 years’ imprisonment, and for 1.04 grammes of cocaine and following the case of Lau Tak Ming, the appropriate starting point after trial would be one of about 2 years and 3 months’ imprisonment.

11.  Taking those two sentences together and taking into account the principle of totality, I would have taken a starting point of 5 years’ imprisonment had I convicted you after trial for these different types of drugs and trafficking.

12.  Defendant, you have pleaded guilty and therefore the full one-third discount should be given to you and there are special circumstances on the papers which justify a lenient view to be taken of the facts.  In those circumstances, defendant, you will be sentenced to 2 years and 9 months’ imprisonment.