COURT: The defendant pleaded guilty to one charge of trafficking in a dangerous drug contrary to section 4(1)(a) and (3) of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, Cap 134.
He was intercepted at the taxi stand at Terminal 1 of the Hong Kong International Airport and he admitted that his baggage contained illegal stuff that he brought back to Hong Kong from Brazil. It was found that the brown travelling bag contained floor mats, each contained dangerous drugs which, upon analysis turn out to be a total of 20.22 kilogrammes of a powder containing 14.5 kilogrammes of cocaine.
He admitted under caution that he was approached by a former school friend to go abroad to bring some stuff to Hong Kong, and he believed this involved dangerous drugs. He was promised HK$30,000 as a reward.
The retail value of the drugs was in the region of about HK$19.7 million.
The defendant is now aged 19, about to turn 20 this May. He was born in Hong Kong with a clear criminal record. It is advanced on his behalf that he committed the present offence out of stupidity and he has never been a delinquent at all. He knows that he will have to face a lengthy sentence, practically the best part of his life in prison, but pleads through his counsel for any possible leniency.
In sentencing this defendant, I have taken into account the nature of the offence, the drugs involved and the sentencing authorities and tariff, as well as mitigation advanced and those contained in the letters of mitigation.
In sentencing in drugs cases the most significant consideration is the amount of narcotics involved. According to the guideline laid down in the case of Abdallah for trafficking in heroin or cocaine weighing 4 to 15 kilogrammes a starting point of 26 to 30 years is to be adopted.
In the present case the narcotics being 14.5 kilogrammes I am of the view that the appropriate starting point should be one of 30 years. In the present case there is aggravating feature of an international element. In Abdallah’s case it says that for every 1 kilogramme the enhancement should be not less than 2 years. However, I consider that the 30 year starting point is already a very lengthy sentence and with this amount of drugs normally they are importing and also involve international factors.
I would exercise leniency by letting the 2 years’ enhancements subsume into the 30 years starting point which means that I am not going to enhance it by another two years. But please bear in mind that this is an exception rather than the norm, given the fact that the starting point is already a very high one.
So the greatest mitigating factor in this case is the defendant’s plea of guilty. So one-third discount. He goes to prison for 20 years.