Woman found in possession of meth jailed for 10 months

A woman charged with the unlawful possession of illicit drugs at a prominent Suva hotel has been sentenced to 10 months’ imprisonment.

Yin Qing Qing pleaded guilty and was sentenced yesterday by Magistrate Sufia Hamza after 42.9 grams of methamphetamine were discovered at the Yue Lai Hotel in October last year.

Magistrate Hamza said Qing Qing had pleaded guilty to a charge of possession of property suspected to be proceeds of crime, an offence under the Proceeds of Crime Act.

The offence carries a maximum penalty of two years’ imprisonment or a fine and is classified as a serious offence due to its link to drug-related criminal activity.

Magistrate Hamza said such offences required deterrent sentences to discourage similar conduct.

In determining the sentence, the court adopted a starting point of 18 months’ imprisonment, taking into account aggravating factors.

These included the fact that Qing Qing entered Fiji and committed the offence shortly afterwards, which the court said showed a disregard for the country’s laws.

The court then considered mitigating factors raised by the defence, including the early guilty plea, and reduced the sentence to 14 months.

A further four months were deducted to account for time already spent in custody, resulting in a final sentence of 10 months’ imprisonment.

Magistrate Hamza said there was no compelling reason to suspend the sentence and also declined to impose a fine.

The court granted Qing Qing 28 days to lodge an appeal against the sentence.