[Sativa]

A Canadian national was sentenced to five years in prison for smuggling cannabis into Taiwan, announced officials of the Taipei High Court yesterday in a written statement.

David Korky Robertsen, 30, was arrested in April 2006 after having smuggled 2kg of cannabis past Taiwan customs. The drug was concealed in cat food supplies.

In April 2006, Robertsen accepted US$1,500 from Michael Richardson of British nationality as a reward for smuggling the cannabis into Taiwan.

Robertsen then traveled back to Canada, where he bought the drug, and concealed it in pet food. He then mailed the drug to himself in Taiwan by express delivery.

At first, he was sentenced to 10 years by the Taipei District Court. Prosecutors asked for a 15-year prison term, but he was still sentenced to 10 years. During his trial, Robertsen pleaded guilty and admitted the charges against him.

In the High Court's written statement, however, the panel of judges said that even though Robertsen had tried to make a profit by importing the cannabis into Taiwan, it was difficult to establish his intentions, given that the quantity involved was relatively low.

Robertsen was thus sentenced to five years in prison, as stipulated in Article 59 of the penal code, as well as other related regulations.

There was no indication that Robertsen would appeal the court verdict as of yesterday.

News Hawk: Lord Mong - http://www.420Magazine.com
Source: The China Post
Author: The China Post staff
Copyright: Copyright © 1999 – 2007 The China Post.
Website: Canadian man sentenced to five years for drug smuggling - The China Post