COURT: Defendant, you have pleaded guilty to trafficking in dangerous drugs, namely 13.99 kilogrammes of crystalline solid containing 13.48 kilogrammes of methamphetamine hydrochloride, commonly known as “ice.”
What occurred is as follows. On 28 July of last year, at about 7.35 pm, Customs and Excise officers at the airport saw you and your younger sister approach the check-in desk for a flight to the Philippines. After checking in, they approached the two of you. You said that the two suitcases belonged to you and your sister. You were both then taken to a search room.
The suitcases contained mens clothing and nothing personal of the two ladies. However, in each suitcase, officers discovered a concealed compartment. Each compartment contained three packets of dangerous drugs, a total of nine packets, the subject of the charge. You were arrested and under caution said, “My boss told me there were some uniforms inside the suitcases. My boss assigned me to pick up the luggage which is located at Guangzhou Guest House, Tsim Sha Tsui.
In a subsequent video-recorded interview, you said that you and your younger sister flew from Manila to Macao to visit your boyfriend. A man called Kalos asked you, through your boyfriend, to help him pick up some suitcases in Hong Kong. Kalos gave you HK$2,000, some of which you had to use to pay the excess baggage charge.
You picked up the three suitcases from the guesthouse. You claimed that you did not know there were drugs inside; that someone would meet you in the Philippines to collect the suitcases. In your possession was found US$402, HK$195.30 and some pesos. The street value of the dangerous drugs in Hong Kong is approximately HK$9,289,360.
You are a lady of hitherto clear record. You are 31 years of age and native of the Philippines. You are single and you work as an accounts manager in the Philippines earning the equivalent of about HK$10,000 per month. You are educated to university level.
Ms Lai informs me that some 5 months ago, whilst in custody, you gave birth to a child. That child is the child of you and your boyfriend. That whilst coming from a fairly humble family, all six of the children have gone on to gainful employment and university education.
In relation to the present offence, you first met your boyfriend in 2011 and you now realise that he used you for his own purposes. You believed him to be a reputable businessman dealing in electrics in China.
You apologised to your younger sister because though innocent, she has had to spend one year in gaol because of what you have done. You are very remorseful and have learned a bitter lesson. Ms Lai, perhaps unnecessarily, assures me that you will never do such thing again.
You realise that the next time that you see your child, that child will be a teenager. Ms Lai produced to me three letters which I have read, one from your parents, one from your brother who works and resides in the UK and one from yourself. Those letters, as one would expect, speak well of you.
Ms Lai referred me to no sentencing authorities, this being such a large amount of drugs, but she assures me that you have been advised of the type of sentence you can expect. Ms Lai also, very realistically, recognises that there must be an enhancement of sentence because of the international aspect to this crime.
I turn now to the sentence itself. The amount of “ice” that you were taking into the Philippines was almost 13½ kilogrammes worth almost HK$10 million street value.
I take into account mitigation that has been advanced, and especially that of you giving birth to your child. The only real mitigation in this case, of course, is your plea of guilty and expression of remorse.
This is an extremely serious offence involving, as it does, a very large amount of drugs of a very high value, and the transporting to another country. As well as putting the citizens of that country at risk, it also damages the reputation of Hong Kong.
In all the circumstances and taking everything into account, I take as a starting point 27 years’ imprisonment, enhanced to 30 years for the international aspect. You have pleaded guilty, you are entitled to discount and therefore you receive the full one-third. You will go to prison for 20 years.