COURT: The defendant has pleaded guilty in the Magistrates’ Court to one count of trafficking in a dangerous drug, namely 0.97 kilogrammes of a powder containing 0.47 kilogrammes of cocaine.
The facts are all too familiar in that the defendant was stopped at our International Airport having arrived on a flight from Doha and in his backpack in a false lining was found the cocaine which is the subject matter of the count.
The estimated retail value of the drugs in Hong Kong at the time of seizure is HK$970,000.
As is typical of these cases, the defendant said he was approached in Colombia and offered a vast sum of money in that he was promised US$7,000 to bring the backpack to Hong Kong to pass it on to someone here.
In mitigation, Mr Haynes, who is a very experienced counsel, Mr Haynes has said everything he could possibly say on his behalf. Basically, the defendant is a young man of 25 years and has a clear record and is totally remorseful and was tempted with the prospect of a huge amount of money to bring these drugs into Hong Kong.
However, the courts in Hong Kong are facing a very, very tough task of preventing drugs from entering Hong Kong, basically because we have an open border and it is so hard with the amount of people travelling into Hong Kong and out of Hong Kong to control the drugs coming into Hong Kong, so we have very severe sentences to try and send a message to ask people not to bring drugs in.
The Court of Appeal has recognised this as early as 1990 when guidelines were laid down for trafficking in heroin in the case of Lau Tak Ming [1990] HKLR 370, and in the case of Pedro Nel Rojas a few years later the Court of Appeal said that the guidelines laid down for trafficking in heroin is to be used for trafficking in cocaine.
The guidelines have laid down that for trafficking in 400 to 600 grammes the suggested imprisonment would be anywhere from 15 to 20 years’ imprisonment. In this case, the amount is 470 grammes, so as recognised by Mr Haynes, this would attract somewhere between 16 to 17½ years’ imprisonment.
Of course, as Mr Haynes pointed out, it is a sad matter when a young man is sent to prison for a long time. However, because the courts have to consider deterrence in drug trafficking cases, the background of a particular defendant pales into insignificance because the evil effect of drugs to the local community is well-known and we try our best to protect our young people in Hong Kong against the deleterious and devastating effect of drug taking.
The amount in this case is 470 grammes, so I am persuaded to take a lenient approach within the heroin guidelines and so the starting point I would adopt is 16 years. However, there is an aggravating factor in that these drugs were being imported into Hong Kong so I would increase that to 16½ years starting point, and therefore giving the defendant the full discount, the defendant is sentenced to 11 years’ imprisonment.
The only thing I can say is that for the Embassy or the Consulate of Colombia to send a message back to Colombia to tell people that in Hong Kong we do hand down very severe sentences even if the person is young, coming to Hong Kong with a clear record, and there is not much that can be done because these drugs cartel, as Mr Haynes has said, are vicious and they use the temptation of money to lure young persons with the tempting amount of financial reward to bring these drugs into Hong Kong.
The defendant is sent to prison for 11 years.