AG v Renyard [2024] JRC 238 (05 November 2024)

JUDGMENT THE COMMISSIONER: 1. Terry David Renyard you are 53 years old and appear before this Court for sentence having pleaded guilty to being knowingly concerned in the importation of 192.4 grams of cocaine into Jersey on 5 July 2024. 2. I deal firstly with the confiscation order sought by the Crown. The Attorney General has filed the necessary statement under the Proceeds of Crime (Jersey) Law 1999 in which he concludes, applying the statutory assumptions under the Proceeds of Crime (Jersey) Law 1999, that you have benefited from criminal conduct in the sum of £29,345 being the market value of the cocaine imported by you in the sum of £29,000 together with £345 being the amount of cash found on your person when you were arrested. We agree with that assessment and accordingly declare that amount as the amount by which you have benefitted. Apart from the cash, no other realisable assets have been identified and the Attorney therefore seeks a confiscation order in the amount of £345 which we grant. 3. I turn now to the facts of the offence. You were stopped and questioned by a Customs Officer at Jersey Airport following your arrival on a flight from Manchester. You told the officer that you were on holiday in Jersey for a few days to visit a friend named James, that you said that you were unsure of his full name and where and when you would be meeting him. You were escorted to the baggage search area and when the current prohibitions and restrictions were explained to you you stated that you had not brought any prohibited or restricted items into Jersey. About three quarters of an hour after you were stopped, the officer proceeded to carry out a search of your person. During the explanation of the search you were asked if you were concealing anything to which you replied, "I am yeah" . You were asked what you were concealing and you replied, " its cocaine" . During the search you retrieved a clingfilm wrapped package from your underwear and handed it to officers. The drugs were subsequently analysed and confirmed to be 192.4 grams of cocaine with a purity of 64%. The drugs expert indicated that the value at street level would be between £29,000 to £48,000 or £16,300 to £20,400 if sold at wholesale. 4. You first appeared in the Magistrate's Court on 8 July 2024 and entered a guilty plea to the charge. Jurisdiction was declined and the case was sent to this court for indictment and sentencing today. You were remanded in custody. You have spent the equivalent of 121 days on remand, the equivalent to a sentence of 5 months and 28 days imprisonment. 5. We have had regard to the sentencing guidelines of cases involving the trafficking of Class A controlled drugs in powder form which were laid down by the Court of Appeal in AG v Rimmer [2001] JLR 373 . You imported 192.4 grams of cocaine with a purity of 64%. The guidelines indicate a starting point of 10-13 years' imprisonment for a quantity between 100-250 grams. The quantity of cocaine imported in this case is towards the middle of that bracket. 6. We note that you were cooperative in interview and accepted responsibility for the importation. Nevertheless this was an entirely commercial venture, planned by you to make a significant profit. The Crown has moved for a starting point of 12 years' imprisonment with which we agree. 7. We have considered the contents of the Pre-Sentencing Report and note that you freely accepted responsibility for importing cocaine into Jersey knowing that it was illegal to do so. You also admitted that you planned to sell the cocaine in Jersey and then return to Spain and that you were motivated by profit and intended to use the profit to settle an outstanding debt in Spain. You have acknowledged that importing Class A drugs has a detrimental effect on the community and individual users. The Report assessed you as being at high risk of reoffending, risk factors being your lengthy criminal history, your drug use, childhood aversity and continued debt. 8. We note that although the evidence against you was overwhelming, and therefore a conviction was virtually inevitable, you pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity. The Jurats were however divided as to whether this would necessarily entitle you to the full one third discount given that conviction was, as I say, inevitable. However, by a majority the Court will allow you the full one third credit for your guilty plea. 9. In the Pre-Sentence Report the Probation Officer noted that you appear to understand the serious implications of bringing a large amount of cocaine into a small island like Jersey. As the Crown has noted, and as the Court has stated on numerous occasions, these offences are treated severely by the courts of the island because they are dangerous, ruin lives and have a damaging impact on the local community. 10. Your counsel has asked the Court to take into account your attitude to the offence and your refusal to blame others or your background for your offending. Your letter of remorse is, in the Court's experience, unusual in the candid approach to your offending and we are prepared to give you some additional credit on account of that. 11. You are accordingly sentenced to 7 years and 6 months' imprisonment. 12. We also order the forfeiture and destruction of the drugs seized and of your mobile phone. Authorities Proceeds of Crime (Jersey) Law 1999. AG v Rimmer [2001] JLR 373 Page Last Updated: 03 Dec 2024 Back to top About JLIB Accessibility Contacts Copyright Disclaimer Feedback Privacy policy Site map BAILII: Copyright Policy | Disclaimers | Privacy Policy | Feedback | Donate to BAILII