The circumstances of the trafficking were that you collected, and put some effort into collecting, a parcel apparently at the request of somebody called Gaddafi. That parcel had been dispatched to Hong Kong and contained the cocaine. You eventually arrived to collect that parcel and indeed had to make several attempts before you succeeded in doing so. When you were intercepted, the cannabis was found on your person.
Once you had been intercepted by the Customs Officers you agreed to take part in a controlled delivery. It seems that you received a telephone call from another telephone and that in accordance with the instructions of the Customs Officers, told the caller that you had collected the parcel. Thereafter you made a number of attempts to contact the person, Gaddafi, but without success.
As rightly pointed out by Mr Richmond on your behalf it is not your fault that that came to nothing and you indeed did show a real willingness, which you carried through as far as you were able, to be of assistance.
You are an adult. You know that what you have done is extremely serious in Hong Kong. You know you are going to face a substantial term of imprisonment. You do not need me to lecture you about the evils of drugs but we do take these things extremely seriously in this region.
The authorities to which I have been referred insofar as the appropriate starting point are well known. I arrive at substantially the same figure as that suggested to me but by a slightly different route. It seems to me that the appropriate starting point without being too arithmetical about it would be 15½ years, 15 years and 6 months, imprisonment for this quantity of cocaine.
The practice has now built up, I can say with confidence, that for quantities of less than a kilogramme where there is an international element, the enhancement is a year. That ends up with a sentence of 16 and 6 months imprisonment before any credits to which you are entitled.
You are entitled to the full one-third discount for your plea of guilty. That reduces the sentence to 11 years imprisonment on Count 1. I am prepared to reduce that sentence by a further 9 months for your co-operation. That makes the sentence on Count 1 10 years and 3 months imprisonment.
There are no other matters in your personal circumstances or in the commission of this offence which justify any further reduction.
The possession of the cannabis is trifling in comparison with the sentence that is imposed on you in respect of the 1st count. I see that you are a torture claimant or asylum seeker. I take it that means that you have no money so whilst I would normally impose a nominal fine on the 2nd count it is not practical in the present circumstances.
Given the length of the sentence that has been imposed on the 1st count it is not necessary for me to call for a Drug Addiction Treatment Centre report. I think that the justice of the matter is met on Count 2 by sentencing you to 1 day imprisonment which is to be served concurrently with the charge on Count 1.
The effect of that of course is that you serve in total 10 years and 3 months imprisonment.