HKSAR v. Chan Yiu Chuen

HCCC 340/2015

IN THE HIGH COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE

CRIMINAL CASE NO 340 OF 2015

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Transcript of the Audio Recording
of the Sentence in the above Case

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COURT: The defendant now aged 26 was 25 at the time of his arrest on 18 May 2015. He was intercepted by the police in possession of 247 grammes of a mixture containing 170 grammes of ketamine.

This had a street value of $31,616.

Plainly, this was a far larger quantity than for self‑consumption, which is what the defendant tried to make out when he was firstarrested, but he now accepts, of course, that this was a plain case of trafficking.

Under the guidelines in Secretary for Justice v Hii Siew Cheng & Anor [2009] 1 HKLRD 1, the sentencing tariff after trial should fall into a bracket of between 6 and 9 years imprisonment for 50 to 300 grammes of ketamine.

In normal terms, the proper sentence after trial for this amount of ketamine would be 7½ years’ imprisonment. In fact, the defendant was selling ketamine in order to be able to consume it because he had to purchase it for his own use, and I shall make a very small reduction on account of his self‑consumption of some part of this quantity.

Yes, would you stand, please, Mr Chan.

As you have heard me say, the normal sentence after trial would have been 7½ years’ imprisonment for this quantity of ketamine. As it is, you very sensibly pleaded guilty at an early opportunity and you will receive full credit for having done so. Apart from your plea of guilty there is really no matter in mitigation which affects sentence, but I accept that you are a user of ketamine as well as a seller of it. Some small part of this quantity may well have been consumed by yourself.

In those circumstances, the sentence that I impose today is one of 4 years and 10 months’ imprisonment.