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District Court 22 November 2024

R v Hoang

[2024] NSWDC 621

Drugs
CRIME SENTENCING OBJECTIVE SERIOUSNESS SPECIFIC AND GENERAL DETERRENCE SUBJECTIVE MATTERS

Citation: R v Hoang [2024] NSWDC 621
Court: District Court of New South Wales
Date: 22 November 2024
Judge: King SC DCJ

Background

The offender was the principal in a drug supply operation intercepted in December 2022. In the early hours of 8 December 2022, he travelled north from Cabramatta in a Toyota RAV4 with family members. Highway Patrol officers stopped the vehicle near Port Macquarie and found 22.5 kilograms of methylamphetamine concealed in the boot.

A search warrant executed later that day at the offender's Cabramatta home uncovered a further 64 grams of methylamphetamine, 141.09 grams of MDMA, 156.55 grams of cocaine, $29,408 in cash, and drug supply paraphernalia. CCTV footage showed the offender personally loading the drugs into the vehicle the previous day, and a blue marker used to label the heat-sealed kilogram packages was found in his room.

The offender pleaded guilty at committal proceedings to three counts and asked the court to take two further offences into account on a Form 1: recklessly dealing with proceeds of crime and a separate methylamphetamine supply charge.

  • The appropriate weight to give the offender's claimed duress as a mitigating factor
  • The objective seriousness of each offence, including the offender's role as principal
  • How the standard non-parole periods applied to Counts 1 and 2
  • Whether special circumstances existed to justify a departure from the statutory 75% non-parole to total sentence ratio
  • The construction of an appropriate aggregate sentence across three counts and two Form 1 matters

Decision

King SC DCJ assessed the offence on Count 1 (22.5 kilograms of methylamphetamine, a large commercial quantity) as involving significant objective seriousness. The offender held a trusted, central role as the organiser and principal of the operation. The court was not satisfied that any claim of duress was credible, and accordingly it carried no meaningful mitigating weight.

The 25% guilty plea discount was applied across all counts, reflecting the utilitarian value of the early pleas entered at committal. The court took into account the two Form 1 matters when sentencing on Count 1, treating the relevant events as a single sequence of offending on one occasion, albeit spread across distance and involving distinct offences.

The court found special circumstances warranting a reduction in the non-parole period below the statutory 75% minimum. This was the offender's first time in custody and the aggregate sentence was substantial. His Honour considered that a meaningful period of supervised parole was necessary to support rehabilitation and reintegration into lawful conduct.

Indicative sentences were set for each count before the aggregate was constructed. The final aggregate sentence was 12 years' imprisonment with a non-parole period of eight years, representing approximately 66% of the total term. The sentence commenced on 8 December 2022, the date the offender entered custody.

Orders Made

  • Count 1 (knowingly take part in supply of large commercial quantity of methylamphetamine, 22.5 kg): indicative non-parole period of 7 years, total term of 10 years 6 months (incorporating two Form 1 matters)
  • Count 2 (supply not less than commercial quantity of MDMA, 141.09 g): indicative term of 4 years, non-parole period of 2 years 6 months
  • Count 3 (supply indictable quantity of cocaine, 156.55 g): indicative term of 3 years (no standard non-parole period applicable)
  • Aggregate sentence: 12 years' imprisonment with a non-parole period of 8 years
  • Sentence commenced: 8 December 2022
  • First eligible for parole: 7 December 2030
  • Sentence expires: 7 December 2034

Key Takeaways

  • The District Court treated the offender's role as organiser and principal of a large-scale drug operation as a significant aggravating factor, reflecting the substantial objective seriousness of the offending.
  • A claim of duress will not automatically attract mitigating weight at sentence; where the court finds the claim lacks credibility, it will be given little or no consideration in the sentencing calculus.
  • Guilty pleas entered at committal attracted the maximum 25% discount under the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999, reflecting the utilitarian value of early resolution.
  • Special circumstances were established on the basis of a first-time custodial sentence of significant length, justifying a reduction in the non-parole period from the statutory 75% to approximately 66% of the total term.
  • Under the aggregate sentencing approach, the court constructed a single combined sentence from three counts and two Form 1 matters, with indicative sentences provided for each individual count to preserve transparency in the reasoning.

Legislation and Cases Referenced

Legislation
- Crimes Act 1900 (NSW), s 193B(3) (recklessly dealing with proceeds of crime)
- Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (NSW), s 32 (Form 1 procedure)
- Drugs (Misuse and Trafficking) Act 1985 (NSW), s 25(1) (supply of prohibited drug)

Cases
- Abbas v R (2013) 231 A Crim R 413