CRIMINAL CASE NO. 14 OF 2010
The Summary of Facts which was admitted by the defendant revealed the following: on 17 May 2009 the defendant was intercepted by police officers at Lo Wu Railway Station.
Inside his handbag the police found a total of approximately 1.69 kilograms of ketamine. The defendant was arrested and cautioned.
In a later subsequent record of interview the defendant admitted that he was asked by a male to take the drug from Shenzhen to Hong Kong for $4,000. The defendant acted as a courier to bring drugs across the border.
The guidelines in sentencing are to be found in the case of The Secretary of Justice v Hii Siew Cheng CAAR7/2006. The starting point for trafficking in over 1 kilogram of ketamine is 14 years upwards.
In HKSAR v Law Siu Fai HCCC122/2009 a starting point of 15 years was adopted in relation to trafficking 1.287 kilograms of ketamine.
In HKSAR v Kwok Tung HCCC158/2009 a starting point of 15 years was also adopted in relation to trafficking in 1.236 kilograms of ketamine.
In HKSAR v Abdallah Anwar Abbas CACC304/2008 the Court of Appeal gives further guidelines on trafficking large quantities of heroin. Having perused that case, I am of the view that the same principle could also be adopted and modified in the present case.
Adopting the same logic I am of the decision that the appropriate sentence for trafficking between 1 kilogram and 2 kilograms of ketamine the starting point should be in the range of 14 to 17 years’ imprisonment. Thus the starting point for trafficking 1.69 kilograms of ketamine in the present case should therefore be set at 16 years’ imprisonment.
The only mitigation in this case is the defendant’s plea at its earliest opportunity, he will be given the usual one‑third discount.
For the sole offence, the defendant stands convicted, he is sentenced to 10 years and 8 months’ imprisonment.