By The SUN
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| Drug trafficking cases like Quejada's are dealt with at the High Court |
A Filipina torture claimant on recognizance who
appeared at the Court of First Instance today, Friday, for a scheduled
sentencing on a drug trafficking charge, will have to wait until Jan 31 next year to know her fate.
Prosecutors in the case against Maricris Q. Quejada,
38, asked Judge Susana D’Almada Remedios to postpone the sentencing until that
day so they can make further inquiries about certain matters that could
mitigate her offence.
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| PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE |
The judge agreed to the request, and remanded Quejada
in custody until then.
Quejada pleaded guilty to the drug trafficking charge at Eastern Court on Aug. 22 this year, saying she was tempted to accept a package
for a “friend” in May last year, which turned out to contain about 1.9 kilos of
ecstacy tablets, in exchange for $5,000.
The value of the drugs was estimated to be around $310,000.
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| Pindutin para sa detalye |
Following her plea, Magistrate Jason Wan ordered the case transferred to the Court of First Instance for sentencing.
Drug
trafficking is a serious offence in Hong Kong, which carries a maximum penalty
of life imprisonment and up to $5 million in fines.
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| PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE |
In her statement to the police, Quejada said she was
lured into the illicit deal by a man called Emeca who contacted her through WhatsApp
in May last year, and a woman called Megan whom the man introduced as his
girlfriend.
The pair offered $5,000 to the unemployed former
domestic worker if she would agree to accept a parcel for their friend Jack.
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| MAY CHANCE KA PANG MANALO! |
Although she found the offer suspicious, Quejada said she agreed to the deal as she was enticed by the big payment that was offered.
What she didn’t know was that the parcel she was meant
to receive had already been intercepted by customs officers at the airport, as
they found it suspicious.
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| Press for details |
The shipment from Germany was listed to contain “materials
for a wedding gown,” but officers who opened it for inspection found 1,862 grams of tablets
containing 531.6 grams of methylenedioxymethamphetamine, a hallucinogenic
substance found in the drug commonly known as “ecstacy”, hidden inside.
Quejada
was arrested after accepting the package, and was confirmed by Megan who was
the original consignee, as someone authorized to accept delivery.
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| PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE |
Following
her arrest, Emeka and Megan disconnected the phone numbers they gave her. Jack
initially sent her a message telling her where to take the drug parcel, but
stopped communicating after apparently being tipped off by the two.
Customs reminds the public to stay alert, and not take part in drug trafficking activities in exchange for money. They must not agree to accept, carry or transact in illicit goods on behalf of others; or to allow others to use their name or home address for receiving mailed packages. Anyone may report any suspected drug trafficking activities to Customs' 24-hour hotline 2545 6182 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk).
