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HCCC69/2010
IN THE HIGH COURT OF THE
HONG KONGSPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION
COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE
CRIMINAL CASE NO. 69 OF 2010
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HKSAR |
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v. |
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Cheung Chiu-keung |
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| Date: |
26 July 2010 at 10.22 am |
| Present: |
Ms Hermina Ng, PP,of the Department of Justice, for HKSAR |
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Mr Paul C L Leung, instructed by Messrs Edmund W H Chow & Co., assigned by D.L.A., for the Accused |
| Offence: |
Trafficking in a dangerous drug(販運危險藥物) |
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Transcript of the Audio Recording
of the Sentence in the above Case
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COURT: You are charged with a single count of trafficking in a dangerous drug. The drugs which you handed over to PC34625 were not drugs found simply in your possession, it being unclear what your precise role was. You were found actually dealing in or supplying drugs on the streets to someone whom you thought was a customer. You were caught in the act of actual trafficking. And a lucrative business it must have been for you for you sold the drugs, the subject matter of the charge, in a single transaction to a complete stranger and someone you would have expected to be a new customer for $24,000.
You have got an appalling criminal record having been, by the age of 41, before the courts on over 30 occasions. It is clear that you have been a drug addict for over 20 years, I am informed since the age of 17, although your first conviction for possession of drugs came in January of 1990. And you have also been convicted of trafficking in dangerous drugs in 2005 when you received a sentence of 2 years’ imprisonment.
Although you appear to have been undeterred by your previous sentences, I have to bear in mind that you must have been heavily addicted to drugs for many years and, as a result, are unlikely to be deterred by sentences of imprisonment or by the fact of imprisonment. In any event the sentence I am about to pass will be the longest you have ever served.
Mr Leung has made a realistic submission on your behalf. The only thing which can be said for you in mitigation is that you have pleaded guilty and indicated your intention to plead guilty well before the hearing today. For that plea you will receive a one-third discount. The quantity of narcotic for sentencing purposes in this case is 52.92 grammes of methamphetamine hydrochloride also known as “Ice.”
In accordance with the guidelines set out in Attorney General v Ching Kwok Hung [1991] 2 HKLR 125, I assess the starting point in your case, after trial, at 9 years’ imprisonment. As I have indicated you will get a discount for your plea of one-third. Accordingly, the sentence that I pass on you is one of 6 years’ imprisonment.
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