R v ELALI [2006] NSWDC 42

New South Wales District Court

CITATION: R v ELALI [2006] NSWDC 42

HEARING DATE(S): 08/09/2006

JUDGMENT DATE: 8 September 2006

EX TEMPORE JUDGMENT DATE : 09/08/2006

JUDGMENT OF: Berman SC DCJ

DECISION: See paragraphs [22] and [23]

CATCHWORDS: Criminal Law - Sentence - Supply Prohibited Drug - Form 1

LEGISLATION CITED: Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act 1985

PARTIES: Crown Yossef Elali (offender)

FILE NUMBER(S): 06/11/0172; 06/11/0173

COUNSEL: K. Dailly (offender)

SOLICITORS: NSW DPP (Crown) Teakle Ormsby Conn Lawyers

SENTENCE

1 HIS HONOUR: Youssef Elali appears for sentence today on three matters. In relation to one of those there is a Form 1. The three offences are supplying cocaine. The matter on the Form 1 is an offence of goods in custody. It relates to the substantive matters, as I will shortly outline.

2 The offender pleaded guilty in the Local Court to two offences of actually supplying cocaine. In this Court, shortly before his trial was about to commence, he pleaded guilty to another offence on an indictment. This was also an offence of supplying cocaine. It does not relate to an actual supply but it is a case of the offender being in possession of a substantial quantity of cocaine for the purpose of supplying it.

3 On 7 September 2005 the offender was contacted by an associate of his, by the name of Jeffrey Telavavai. Mr Telavavai offered the offender a job. He said that he could earn a thousand dollars for a day's work. The offender knew full well that he was being offered work that was illegal. He was under financial pressures at the time and so he decided to accept Mr Telavavai's offer. He did this despite the advice and request of the offender's partner. At the time they had two children. Despite these entreaties the offender ignored his partner's request and went off to perform the illegal work offered to him by Mr Telavavai.