HKSAR v. Ng SIU KAM

HCCC165/2009

IN THE HIGH COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE

CRIMINAL CASE NO. 165 OF 2009

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Transcript of the Audio Recording

of the Sentence in the above Case

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COURT: This defendant was charged with one count of conspiracy to traffic in ketamine, with Wong Shun-wing. He pleaded not guilty and was convicted by the jury by a majority verdict of six to one.

Obviously, the jury had accepted Wong’s testimony, hence the defendant had recruited Wong and used his status as a resident in the restricted area for the purpose of more conveniently bringing ketamine back from the Mainland. The defendant had arranged with Wong to take drugs 10 to 20 times, and each time it was at least 500 grammes.

The defendant had a number of previous convictions. He had been put on probation. He had been to Detention Centre and Training Centre for drug-related offences. Unfortunately, all this had not been useful for his rehabilitation.

This is a serious scenario. The defendant was not just agreeing to traffic in drugs, but he himself had arranged with Wong to actually deliver the drugs many times.

According to the authorities, trafficking in over 1,000 grammes of ketamine would attract a sentence of 14 years upward. Although we do not know the actual figure involved, just for the last time alone, it was 800-odd grammes. Hence the aggregate amount of ketamine successfully delivered to Hong Kong must be indeed extremely large.

The defendant has shown no remorse for the offence whatsoever.

In the circumstances and having looked at the authorities referred to by the prosecution, I will impose a term of 24 years. There is no mitigating factor I could think of.