IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA
AT Melbourne
CRIMINAL DIVISION	Revised
Not Restricted
Suitable for Publication	

Case No. CR-23-01743

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS		
		
v		
		
CONG NGUYEN		

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JUDGE:	HIS HONOUR JUDGE ROZEN	
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne	
DATE OF HEARING:	17 May 2024	
DATE OF SENTENCE:	31 May 2024	
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v Nguyen	
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2024] VCC 872		

REASONS FOR SENTENCE
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Subject:	CRIMINAL LAW
Catchwords: 	Trafficking in a drug of dependence – Large commercial quantity – Sophisticated enterprise – Highly trusted person – Above middle range – No relevant criminal history – Guilty plea – Motivated by greed – Good prospects of rehabilitation – Sentencing practices – Standard sentence offence – Little by way of mitigation – High moral culpability		
Legislation Cited:	Criminal Procedure Act (Vic); Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981 (Vic); Sentencing Act 1991 (Vic)
Cases Cited:	Gregory v The Queen [2017] VSCA 151; Rahmani v The Queen [2021] VSCA 51; Direction of Public Prosecutions v Dalgliesh [2017] HCA 41; Dawid v Director of Public Prosecutions [2013] VSCA 64; DPP v Xiao Kang [2023] VCC 2431; DPP v Sananikone [2023] VCC 1717; DPP v
	Kwag [2023] VCC 1067; DPP v Tien Nguyen (County Court of Victoria, Judge Allen, 6 December 2019); DPP v Christie (County Court of Victoria, Judge Smith, 15 November 2022); DPP v Richardson [2023] VSCA 241; DPP v Jabbour [2023] VSCA 204; DPP v Natale [2022] VCC
	1199
Sentence:	17 years and 6 months’ imprisonment – Non- parole period of 11 years – s 6AAA declaration – 21 years’ imprisonment with a non-parole period of 14 years – s 89DI declaration – Serious drug offender

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APPEARANCES:
	Counsel	Solicitors	
For the DPP	Mr J. Johnston	Office of Public Prosecutions	
			
For the Accused	Mr A. Lewis &
Ms L. Thies	Fayman Lawyers	

HIS HONOUR:

Introduction
1	Cong Nguyen, after a sentencing indication given by me on 27 March 2024, which you accepted, you have pleaded guilty to one charge that, between 18 August 2022 and 20 October 2022, you trafficked in drugs of dependence, namely cocaine and methylamphetamine, in a quantity that was not less than a large commercial quantity, which carries a maximum penalty of imprisonment for life. 
2	You are to be sentenced based on the Summary of Prosecution Opening for Sentence Indication dated 20 March 2024. This is an agreed document upon which the following summary is based.
The Offending
3	During the charged period of a little over two months in 2022, you were involved in a large-scale drug trafficking syndicate in which you stored, packaged, and delivered very significant quantities of cocaine and methylamphetamine.
4	You conducted 17 ‘dead drop’ deliveries of illicit drugs which were left in agreed locations to be collected shortly thereafter. Each agreed location was a public place, such as parkland or a vacant lot, where the drugs would be concealed in bushes.
5	You rented an apartment located at Unit 307, 120 High Street, Windsor (‘Unit 307’) from the wife of a friend, and you were the only person with a key. You would deliver large quantities of cocaine and methylamphetamine in boxes to the address and you would store, package and prepare them for delivery.
6	You utilised two Hyundai iLoad vans, registrations 1VV6TA and 1MB7VF, to transport the drugs to and from Unit 307 and to the dead drop locations. Law enforcement authorities installed tracking devices on both vans.
7	Vehicle registration 1MB7VF is a silver Hyundai iLoad van that was purchased by you and registered in the name of your brother-in-law.
8	Vehicle registration 1VV6TA is a white Hyundai iLoad van that was registered to a NSW company called Margolis Specialised Poultry Pty Ltd that, according to its company extract, had a person by the name of Rupendar Thadi as its Director. In fact, Mr Thadi was not aware of the company and had not given permission for anyone to use his details. According to the Vic Roads registration details, the garaging address of the vehicle is in Alfred Street, Prahran, which is not far from the apartment complex at 120 High Street, Windsor (‘the apartment complex’).
9	Vehicle registration 1VV6TA had a concealed compartment in the floor.
10	Police obtained CCTV recordings from the apartment complex as well as the car park, lift, and door access logs which recorded when you used your access fob.
11	The sequence of events by which the ‘dead drops’ were carried out was largely consistent:
(a)	you would depart your residence in Queens Bridge Street, Southbank (Prima Tower) sometime in the early morning;
(b)	you would attend the public location where one of the Hyundai iLoad vans had been parked, and drive it to the apartment complex;
(c)	you would park the van either in public street parking or in the underground car park of the apartment complex and park next to the lift;
(d)	you would usually enter the lift empty-handed, travel up to level three and enter Unit 307;
(e)	after a period of time, you would re-enter the lift at level three with one or more duffle bags, travel down to the van and leave the apartment complex in the van with the bags in your possession;
(f)	you would drive to a pre-arranged location, place one or more duffle bags containing an unknown quantity of illicit drugs in bushes, and depart;
(g)	a short time later, the bags would be collected by another person; and
(h)	you would park the van back in a public location and return to your residence.
12	On two occasions during the offending period, namely 23 September and 12 October 2022, you were captured on CCTV footage at the apartment complex delivering 16 and 10 boxes, respectively, to Unit 307.
13	The Summary of Prosecution Opening for Sentence Indication details the 17 dead drops. In the first 16 of these, an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine was left by you in a public place.

Dead Drop 1

14	At 5:17 am on 18 August 2022, you attended Tatterson Park in Keysborough in the silver van (1MB7VF). You removed one to two cardboard boxes from the van at a time and carried them into the park. You did this about seven or eight times, each time returning to the van empty handed. You left the park at 5:35 am. The boxes you left in the park contained an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine.
15	At 5:35 am, the police entered Tatterson Park and located ten cardboard boxes placed within bushes. They photographed the boxes and left them in situ.
16	Shortly after, a man arrived at the park and collected the boxes.
17	Surveillance operatives followed the silver van (1MB7VF) and photographed you attending a bakery in Springvale before parking the van in Church Road, Keysborough, which was close to another premises you were renting.

Dead Drop 2

18	At 2:35am on 16 September 2022, you departed Church Road, Keysborough in the white van (1VV6TA), drove to the apartment complex, and parked in the underground carpark.
19	You entered the lift at 3:17 am, scanned access fob A06720BA, and exited on level 3. You were not in possession of any large or bulky items.
20	At 4:19 am, you re-entered the lift from the third floor and travelled down to the car park. You were wearing black gloves and had two large black duffle bags in your possession.
21	You left the apartment complex at 4:25 am and drove to Everest Park in Cairnlea where you deposited an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine and departed at 4:56 am.
22	You were captured on CCTV refueling the white van (1VV6TA) at a 7-Eleven store in Ardeer South between 5:04 and 5:11 am before driving the vehicle to Port Melbourne and parking it in Bridge Street.

Dead Drop 3

23	On 20 September 2022, you left your apartment at Prima Tower at 3:54 am, collected the white van (1VV6TA) from Bridge Street, Port Melbourne and drove it to the apartment complex. You parked in the underground car park and, at 4:24 am, took the lift to level 3. You re-entered the lift two minutes later, wearing black gloves and carrying two large black duffle bags.
24	At 4:29 am you departed the underground carpark and drove to Parkfield Reserve in Noble Park where you left an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine.
25	You travelled back to Port Melbourne where you parked the white van (1VV6TA) in Bridge Street and returned to Prima Tower.

Dead Drop 4

26	At 4:14 am on 21 September 2022, you departed Prima Tower on foot, collected the white van (1VV6TA) from its parked location in Port Melbourne and drove it to Edith Macpherson Park in Noble Park where you left an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine.
27	You left Edith Macpherson Park at 5:32 am, drove to Prahran and parked the white van (1VV6TA) in Charles Street, close to the apartment complex in Windsor, then returned home.

Dead Drop 5

28	On 23 September 2022 you left Prima Tower at 3:04 am, collected the silver van (1MB7VF) from Ferrars Street, South Melbourne and drove it to Charles Street, Prahran. You then got into the white van (1VV6TA) and drove it into the underground carpark at the apartment complex, parking next to the lift.
29	You entered the lift at 3:40 am, pushing a trolley contained ten white “PPS” branded cardboard boxes with yellow and colourless packaging tape, and travelled to level 3.
30	You returned to the lift at 3:48 am, pushing an empty trolley, travelled down to the carpark, and collected six more boxes which you took to level 3.
31	Thirty-four minutes later, you entered the lift at level 3, pushing the trolley which now contained one black duffle bag. You travelled to the carpark, accessed the rear sliding door of the van, and left the apartment complex.
32	You drove to parkland in Matilda Drive, Keysborough where you dropped the duffle bag containing an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine. You returned to South Melbourne, parked the van in Ferrars Street and returned to Prima Tower.

Dead Drop 6

33	On 27 September 2022, you left Prima Tower at 3:37 am. You collected the silver van (1MB7VF) from Charles Street, Prahran and drove it to Thomas Street, Windsor, which is adjacent to the apartment complex. You entered the complex on foot via the main entrance door and attended Unit 307 via the lift. You returned to the lift 22 minutes later in possession of two black duffle bags.
34	You drove to Boyd Park in Murrumbeena, carried the bags into the park, and placed them into bushes before taking a photograph of them. The bags contained an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine.
35	The bags were collected by an unknown male 15 minutes later.
Dead Drop 7

36	At 3:40 am on 29 September 2022, you departed Prima Tower in a vehicle driven by a female and were dropped off at Ferrars Street, South Melbourne where the white van (1VV6TA) was parked. You drove the vehicle to the apartment complex and into the underground carpark.
37	You took the lift to level 3 where you attended Unit 307 for thirty minutes. You re-entered the lift with two duffle bags, returned to the carpark, and placed the bags in the van.
38	You departed the apartment complex and drove to Everest Park in Cairnlea where you left an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine. You returned to South Melbourne, parked the vehicle in Ferrars Street, and returned to Prima Tower.

Dead Drop 8

39	You left Prima Tower at 3:37 am on 1 October 2022 and retrieved the white van (1VV6TA) from Ferrars Street, South Melbourne. You drove to Windsor, parked the van near the apartment complex, and entered it on foot. You were captured on CCTV in the lift travelling up to level 3 empty- handed, then returning with a duffle bag containing an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine before leaving via the main entrance.
40	You returned to the vehicle and drove to Tatterson Park in Keysborough where you left an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine before driving back to South Melbourne and parking in Ferrars Street.

Dead Drop 9

41	On 3 October 2022, you left your apartment at Prima Tower at 2:39 am, collected the white van (1VV6TA) from Ferrars Street, South Melbourne and drove it to the underground carpark of the apartment complex. You entered the lift pushing an empty trolley and travelled to level 3 where you remained for an hour. You returned with two black duffle bags.
42	You loaded the duffle bags into the van, left the apartment complex, and travelled to Church Road in Keysborough where you delivered an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine. You returned to South Melbourne and parked the white van in Ferrars Street.
Dead Drop 10

43	You left Prima Tower at 3:51 am on 4 October 2022, collected the silver van (1MB7VF) from its parked location in Queens Bridge Street, Southbank and drove it into the underground carpark of the apartment complex. You removed one black duffle from the vehicle and took the lift to level 3. Two minutes later you returned to the lift carrying a different duffle bag which you placed in the rear cargo area of the van.
44	You returned to Unit 307 where you obtained two more duffle bags, placed them in the van, and left the apartment complex.
45	You drove to The Boulevard Playground in Yarraville, delivered an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine, and returned to Queens Bridge Street, Southbank at 5:32 am.
46	Later that afternoon, you drove the silver van (1MB7VF) to Ferrars Street where the white van (1VV6TA) was parked, then drove the white van to Windsor and parked it in the street near the apartment complex. You entered the complex on foot and travelled up to Unit 307 where you spent the next 49 minutes. You returned to the lift in possession of two large duffle bags, placed them in the white van, and returned to South Melbourne where you parked in Buckhurst Street.
47	You then retrieved the silver van (1MB7VF) from Ferrars Street and drove it to Buckhurst Street where you parked it for four minutes. You then drove the silver van (1MB7VF) away to do some shopping.
48	In the evening, you attended Kmart at the Burwood One Shopping Centre where you purchased several items including three black duffle bags.
Dead Drop 11-13

49	At midnight on 5 October 2022 you left the Burwood One Shopping Centre in the silver van (1MB7VF) and drove to Parkfield Reserve, Noble Park where you delivered an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine.
50	You then attended Cleal Court Reserve in Noble Park where you delivered an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine.
51	You then drove to Edith Macpherson Park, Noble Park where you delivered an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine.
52	You stopped for some food in Springvale and returned to South Melbourne, parking the silver van in Ferrars Street at 4:07 am.

Dead Drop 14 & 15

53	You collected the white van (1VV6TA) from Buckhurst Street at 4:11 am and drove to parkland in the vicinity of 11A Bannes Road, Cairnlea where you delivered an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine.
54	You then continued to Everest Park in Cairnlea, delivered an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine and departed at 4:50 am. You returned to South Melbourne, parked the white van in Ferrars Street, collected the silver van, drove to Southbank, and returned to Prima Tower.

Dead Drop 16

55	On the morning of 12 October 2022, you departed Prima Tower at 3:24 am, collected the white van (1VV6TA) from Charles Street, Prahran and drove it into the underground car park at the apartment complex.
56	At 3:56 am you entered the lift, pushing a trolley containing ten brown cardboard boxes, and took them up to level 3. Half an hour later, you returned to the lift with two black duffle bags on the trolley. You loaded the bags into the white van and left the apartment complex.
57	At 4:54 am you arrived at Everest Park in Cairnlea. You removed one duffle bag from the van, took it into the park, and placed it in bushes. You then returned to the van, retrieved the other duffle bag, took it into the park and placed it into the bushes as well. The bags contained an unknown quantity of methylamphetamine and/or cocaine.
58	You departed Everest Park and returned to Windsor.
Dead Drop 17
59	On the morning of 19 October 2022, you departed Prima Tower at 3:16 am, collected the white van (1VV6TA) from Windsor, and drove it into the underground car park at the apartment complex.
60	You entered the lift on the car park level and exited on level 3. Twenty-five minutes later you returned to the lift wearing black gloves and in possession of two duffle bags.
61	You loaded the bags into the white van and left the underground car park at 4:08 am. You travelled to Cairnlea and parked near a vacant block of land.
62	At 4:34 am you exited the van and removed one of the duffle bags, walked into the vacant lot, and placed the bag in the bushes. You returned to the vehicle, collected the second duffle bag, carried it to the vacant lot and placed it in the bushes with the first bag. You took a photograph of the two bags before returning to the vehicle and leaving the area at 4:49 am.
63	Police entered the vacant lot where you had been and located two duffle bags in the bushes. They photographed the bags in situ then searched one of them, locating 25 blocks of a substance suspected to be cocaine. Some of the blocks had a Mexican Peso note taped to the front of them. Police seized the two bags.
64	On examination, each bag contained twenty-five 1-kilogram blocks of cocaine. The bags and their contents were later examined by AFP Crime Scene Investigator Brittany Sawyer who determined that they contained a total of 49.95 kg of cocaine.
65	On 18 November 2022, the Australian Forensic Drug Laboratory issued a Certificate of Analysis confirming that the purity of the cocaine was 78.8%, making the minimum pure weight of the cocaine 39.36 kg.
66	Schedule 11 of the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981 (Vic) provides that a large commercial quantity (‘LCQ’) of pure cocaine is 750 grams and mixed is 1 kg.
67	The amount of pure cocaine located in the duffle bags is 52.48 times the minimum LCQ.

Investigation

68	A search warrant was executed at Unit 307 on 21 October 2022. Police seized 17 cardboard boxes that were consistent with those you were seen delivering to Unit 307 on 23 September and 12 October 2022.
69	The boxes contained 55 blocks of cocaine weighing a total of 54.76 kg, and 251 packages of methylamphetamine weighing a total of 250.89kg (plus two smaller packages).

Cocaine

70	Based on a certificate of analysis issued by the Australian Forensic Drug Laboratory on 30 November 2022, police determined that the minimum mean purity of the 55 blocks of cocaine was 77.3%, and the minimum total pure weight of the cocaine was 42.36 kg.
71	The amount of pure cocaine contained in the 55 blocks located in unit 307 was 56.48 times the minimum LCQ.
Methylamphetamine

72	On 5 December 2022, the Australian Forensic Drug Laboratory issued a Certificate of Analysis that confirmed the crystalline substance in the 251 packages located in Unit 307 to be methylamphetamine with 80.3% purity.
73	The minimum total pure weight of the 251 packages of methylamphetamine was 201.12kg. The amount of pure methylamphetamine seized from Unit 307 was 402 times the minimum LCQ.
74	Other items seized included a black duffle bag, various cable ties and a cutter, and three flattened cardboard boxes that were consistent with those photographed in the bushes at Tatterson Park in Keysborough on 18 August 2022 (Dead Drop 1).
75	A further search warrant was executed in relation to Unit 307, and a forensic examination of the premises was conducted during 24 and 25 October 2022. A crystalline substance was located all over the unit, covering items such as scales, plastic tubs and buckets, an esky, clip and vacuum seal bags, brown adhesive wraps, duffle bags, Tyvek suits, cardboard, and tarps. Many other items commonly used in the trafficking of drugs were located including sieves, scoops and shovels, a heat-sealing machine, various types of plastic bags, and gloves.
76	Your DNA was detected on a face mask and toothbrush located in the ensuite, and on a drinking straw in the kitchen of the unit.

David Lane, Windsor

77	On 24 October 2022 a search warrant was executed at David Lane, Windsor where you were arrested.
78	Police located several items including $129,355 cash, clothing you wore during the offending, the fob to access the apartment complex, the key to Unit 307, and five Hyundai keys, two of which were found to unlock the white van and one of which unlocked the silver van.
79	During your record of interview you indicated that you had signed the lease for the premises about two weeks prior to your arrest.

18 Church Road, Keysborough

80	A search warrant was executed at the unoccupied premises rented by you at 18 Church Road, Keysborough on 24 and 25 October 2022.
81	Police seized 56 high value items, including artwork, luxury goods, pottery and vases, Japanese armour and clothing, wooden and ceramic items, sculptures, furniture, ornamental swords and knives, collectable cards, bicycles, memorabilia, comic books, and toys.

Objective Gravity
82	Because the sentencing regime for drug trafficking offences is quantity based, the quantity of drugs trafficked in a particular case is a highly relevant, but not determinative, consideration in sentencing. Other important indicators of the seriousness of a given instance of offending include the offender’s role in the trafficking, the duration of the offending, and the motivation for the offender’s involvement. 
83	While it is correct that the quantity of drugs trafficked is merely one consideration in the assessment of objective gravity, it is undoubtably an important one. That must be so in the quantity-based system established by parliament.

84	As the Court of Appeal explained in the case of Rahmani v The Queen:

As to the objective gravity of the offence [of LCQ trafficking], the maximum penalty of life imprisonment sends a message to the community, and to sentencing courts, that this is an offence of the utmost seriousness. As is well recognised, the sentencing regime for drug trafficking offences is quantity-based.  The maximum of life imprisonment for LCQ trafficking is to be compared with the maximum of 25 years’ imprisonment for commercial quantity (CQ) trafficking.
…
It is the Parliament which sets the parameters within which the sentencing discretion is exercised. In the case of LCQ trafficking, the sentencing court is guided by two related parameters: the maximum penalty of life imprisonment and the place of this offence in the legislative hierarchy of trafficking offences differentiated by quantity. As we have said, the quantity trafficked in the present case took it into the highest quantitative category, which marks out the most serious drug trafficking offence under Victorian law.
85	In your case, the quantity of the two drugs trafficked takes it into the highest echelon of offending of this type. These are quantities which are rarely seen in Victorian courts.
86	Further, as was conceded by your counsel, you were not a low-level operative. While you are said to have been acting on the instructions of those above you in the hierarchy (none of whom were identified), what is clear is that you were a highly trusted person in a very significant and sophisticated drug trafficking enterprise.
87	The equipment used included two vans, a rented apartment, and an established methodology of making coordinated dead drops at pre-determined locations.
88	The photos of Unit 307 in the Summary of Prosecution Opening make clear the scale of the business.
89	I consider that the objective gravity of your offending, based on these facts, to be above the middle of the range for trafficking a large commercial quantity of a drug of dependence.
Personal Circumstances

90	You are 44 years of age and come before the Court with no relevant prior criminal history.
91	You were born in Dandenong in 1980 and grew up in the South Eastern suburbs of Melbourne. Your father and mother came to Australia in 1977 and 1979, respectively, as refugees from Vietnam. They initially worked in a cardboard factory, but ultimately started their own textile business, manufacturing children’s clothes for Target, Kmart and Country Road.
92	Your parents enjoyed business success until the mid-1990s when manufacturing businesses moved their companies overseas where the labour was cheaper. This coincided with the opening of Crown Casino, and sadly your parents began to spend more and more time gambling, ultimately having to sell the family home after losing considerable amounts of money.
93	Your parents are now retired and live in Springvale. They came to court to support you.
94	You are the middle child of three and are particularly close with your sister, Chau, a nurse with Monash Health. Chau remains supportive of you and was also present in court. You have a younger brother, Hieu, who also came to court.
95	You were previously married and have a 19-year-old son, Christian, from that marriage. Your separation from your ex-wife was described by your counsel as very amicable and you maintain a strong connection to your son, seeing him on weekends and school holidays up until your remand.
96	In around 2015 you met your current partner, Risa Yashiro, who is from Kanagawa, Japan. You commenced a romantic relationship while Ms Yashiro was working as a translator and English teacher in Australia.
97	After the expiration of her visa, Ms Yashiro returned to Japan and discovered shortly after that she was pregnant with your daughter. Difficulties with travel due to the Covid-19 pandemic meant you were unable to travel to Japan and missed the birth of your daughter in July 2021, only meeting her in early 2022 when Ms Yashiro could return to Australia.
98	Ms Yashiro and Iris now live in Southbank. Your friends have assisted Ms Yashiro to visit you on a weekly basis in custody.
99	The Court received 18 character references from those close to you. A close friend, Ms Sharon Quinn, states that she believes you are remorseful and will ‘choose a different path’. Pauline Huynh, who has known you for 20 years, describes the devastating effect of your offending on you and your family.
100	It is clear from these references that you are held in high esteem by your friends, family, and acquaintances.
101	It is not easy for me to reconcile the descriptions of you as a devoted family man and responsible community member, however, with what the evidence discloses about your involvement in the pernicious drug trade which destroys so many lives, as this Court regularly witnesses.
Plea of Guilty
102	Your plea of guilty has significant utilitarian value. It saves the community a lengthy and complex trial. Your plea is a recognition of responsibility by you and some indication of your remorse. It cannot, however, be described as an early plea, coming as it did only after you received a sentence indication. I accept that it was entered at the ‘earliest available opportunity’ after the indication I gave. 
Rehabilitation
103	It is often difficult to assess an offender’s prospects of rehabilitation. Your case is no different. I accept that you have strong family and community support, and you have no drug addiction or mental health problems.
104	Since your remand you have secured employment within Marngoneet Correctional Centre, working in the prison canteen and as a peer support worker. Your counsel submitted that this engagement in bettering yourself, rather than spending your time idly, is indicative of your strong prospects of rehabilitation.
105	However, where the motivation for offending is significant financial gain, the chances of your re-offending are real.
106	On balance, I therefore assess your rehabilitation prospects as good.
Current Sentencing Practices
107	Counsel for both parties referred the Court to a number of earlier decisions of this Court and the Court of Appeal to inform an understanding of current sentencing practices in relation to large commercial quantity drug trafficking. This is a matter to which the court must have regard, among many others. 
108	However, because the offence is a standard sentence offence, s 5B(2)(b) of the Sentencing Act 1991 (Vic) (‘Sentencing Act’) provides that the court must only have regard to sentences previously imposed for the offence as a standard sentence offence.
109	It was common ground that there are very few such cases that have been determined on appeal by the Court of Appeal. The standard sentence regime was introduced with effect from 2017.
110	The parties drew the Court’s attention to a number of first instance decisions of this Court decided since 2017. In these cases, offenders had pleaded guilty to trafficking multiples of a large commercial quantity of drugs. The quantity range was between 5 times the LCQ and 28 times the LCQ, and the sentences imposed ranged from 12 years to 16 years. Of course, the facts in the cases varied both as to the duration of the offending, and the role and the personal circumstances of the offenders. For example, in the case of Kang, the offender was 23 years of age.
111	These cases have been of some assistance within the constraints explained by the High Court of Australia in the case of Direction of Public Prosecutions v Dalgliesh (a pseudonym). That is, they are historical statements of what has happened in the past; they do not set boundaries on what a court may reasonably impose as a sentence; they are one of a number of matters that must be considered, and they may inform the task of sentencing. 
Consideration
112	The primary sentencing considerations in this case are general and specific deterrence, just punishment, and community protection.
113	The offence is a standard sentence offence and the standard sentence is imprisonment for 16 years. That is ‘the sentence for an offence, taking into account only the objective factors affecting the relative seriousness of the offence, is in the middle of the range of seriousness’. Such factors are to be determined by the court ‘without reference to matters personal to a particular offender’ and ‘wholly by reference to the nature of the offending’. 
114	The standard sentence of 16 years is but one of a range of matters to which I must have regard in determining the appropriate sentence in this case. 
115	In sentencing you I must explain how the sentence I have imposed ‘relates to [the] standard sentence’. 
116	Section 11A of the Sentencing Act provides that, because the offence is a standard sentence offence, unless I consider that it is in the interests of justice not to do so, I must fix a non-parole period in accordance with s 11A(4).
117	For the reasons explained above, yours is a particularly egregious example of the serious offence of LCQ trafficking. Your offending was motivated by greed.
118	Other than your clean record and your plea of guilty, there is little by way of mitigation that has been placed before the court.
119	In the case of Dawid v DPP, Kaye AJA explained that:
… it is important that persons … who contemplate embarking on [drug trafficking] do so in the clear knowledge that, if detected, they will be sentenced to lengthy terms of imprisonment.
120	The sentence I impose must be ‘sufficiently severe to offset the lure of large and relatively easy profits, which can be derived from the trafficking of illicit drugs’. 
121	Having regard to the maximum penalty, the objective seriousness of your offending, and giving full effect to the matters of mitigation discussed earlier, I make the following orders:
(a)	On the charge of trafficking in a drug of dependence – large commercial quantity, you are convicted and sentenced to seventeen years and six months’ imprisonment. This is more than the standard sentence due to my assessment of the objective gravity of your offending, your moral culpability, and the matters of mitigation to which I have referred.
(b)	You will be eligible for parole after 11 years. This is approximately 63% of the head sentence.
(c)	Pursuant to s 18 of the Sentencing Act, I declare that the 585 days you have served on remand in respect of this offence is to be reckoned as time served in respect of the sentence I impose today.
(d)	Pursuant to s 6AAA, but for your plea of guilty, the total effective sentence would have been imprisonment for 21 years with a non-parole period of 14 years.
(e)	I make the disposal order sought by the prosecution noting that it is unopposed.
(f)	Finally, pursuant to s 89DI of the Sentencing Act, I declare you a serious drug offender and order that declaration be noted in the records of the Court.