R v Bun, Soeun [2008] NSWDC 138

R v Bun, Soeun [2008] NSWDC 138

The offender knowingly or recklessly travelled to Cambodia for the purpose of returning with contraband and, by the time it was inserted in her body, must have recognised it was a prohibited drug. Although she was sentenced as a low-level courier for a low marketable importation of 120.1 grams of pure heroin and received mitigation for her early guilty plea and personal circumstances, the harm associated with heroin importation, the potential street supply, and the need for punishment and general deterrence required a substantial full-time custodial sentence of five and a half years with a non-parole period of three years three months.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
01 February 2008
Procedural Posture
Criminal Sentence for Importing a Marketable Quantity of Border Controlled Drug / Sentencing After Early Guilty Plea
Outcome
Convicted and sentenced to imprisonment for five and a half years with a non-parole period of three years three months.
Legal Topics
['importation of Border Controlled Drugs' 'heroin' 'marketable Quantity' 'drug Courier' 'objective Criminality' 'guilty Plea' 'general Deterrence' 'non Parole Period']
['criminal Law' 'sentencing'] ['importation of Border Controlled Drugs' 'heroin' 'marketable Quantity' 'drug Courier' 'objective Criminality' 'guilty Plea' 'general Deterrence' 'non Parole Period']

Case Brief

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Procedural Posture

Criminal Sentence for Importing a Marketable Quantity of Border Controlled Drug / Sentencing After Early Guilty Plea

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['What sentence should be imposed for importing 120.1 grams of pure heroin concealed internally.' 'How the objective seriousness of a low-level courier importation should be assessed.' "What weight should be given to the offender's gambling debt, early guilty plea, personal circumstances, prospects of rehabilitation and conditions of imprisonment." 'What non-parole period should be fixed.']

Ratio Decidendi

The offender knowingly or recklessly travelled to Cambodia for the purpose of returning with contraband and, by the time it was inserted in her body, must have recognised it was a prohibited drug. Although she was sentenced as a low-level courier for a low marketable importation of 120.1 grams of pure heroin and received mitigation for her early guilty plea and personal circumstances, the harm associated with heroin importation, the potential street supply, and the need for punishment and general deterrence required a substantial full-time custodial sentence of five and a half years with a non-parole period of three years three months.

Court Disposition

Convicted and sentenced to imprisonment for five and a half years with a non-parole period of three years three months.

Orders

  • ['Soeun Bun is convicted of importing a border controlled substance, namely heroin, in a marketable quantity contrary to subs 307.2(1) of the Criminal Code (CTH).' 'The offender is sentenced to imprisonment for five and a half years commencing on 30 July 2007 and expiring on 29 January 2013.' 'A non-parole period of...