Cambodia : Australian teen's drug sentence upheld

**Mid** · 07-10-2010, 06:26 PM

Australian teen's drug sentence upheld
Thursday October 07, 2010

Source: Thinkstock

Cambodia's Supreme Court has today upheld a 13-year jail term for an Australian teenager caught carrying heroin en route to Hong Kong, a sentence that angered rights groups when it was first passed in 2005.

Gordon Vuong was caught with 2.1 kg of heroin at Phnom Penh airport while travelling to Hong Kong where traffickers had promised to pay him $1,700, the court heard five years ago.

"This is not right," his lawyer, Kong Heng, said on the sentence.

"He committed the crime when he was only a minor, he was under pressure from traffickers and, as usual for teenagers, he didn't think more carefully when he did it."

A number of websites have created petitions seeking his transfer to Australia, citing poor prison conditions in Cambodia.

tvnz.co.nz

**superman** · 07-10-2010, 06:39 PM

Why should Australia be burdened with him ? If things had gone to plan how many more trips would he have done ?

**Davis Knowlton** · 07-10-2010, 06:45 PM

^Absolutely. Tough shit. When I was a teenager, I was ass deep in a rice paddy getting shot at. Old enough to make the decision to do the crime, old enough to bear the consequences. Fuck him. And that was a lot of smack - we're not talking about a few joints here.

**dirtydog** · 07-10-2010, 06:47 PM

Prices for mules haven't gone up a lot in the last 20 years, they used to get 20 to 30,000baht plus expenses in the old days.

**superman** · 07-10-2010, 06:54 PM

Can a 16 year old legally fly on his own or does he need a letter of consent ?

**stewart888** · 07-10-2010, 07:02 PM

Originally Posted by superman

Can a 16 year old legally fly on his own or does he need a letter of consent ?

From what I understand from the case is that he had a letter of consent. HHis dealer was over 21 and gave him the letter so he could fly. but is was just a one way not a round trip consent.

**Davis Knowlton** · 07-10-2010, 07:03 PM

Fortunately, it doesn't look like he will need the onward ticket.

**dirtydog** · 07-10-2010, 07:05 PM

Originally Posted by superman

Can a 16 year old legally fly on his own or does he need a letter of consent ?

Teenage lasts till 19teen, how old was he when arrested?

**billy the kid** · 10-10-2010, 09:03 PM

smack,,,nice to consume but deadly for body ,soul and mind.
have watched people melt over the years.
as well as the misery they piled on others.
can't have your cake and eat it too with this shit.
unfortunatly there will be others to replace the dumb teenager.

**madjbs** · 10-10-2010, 10:32 PM

Originally Posted by Davis Knowlton

Old enough to make the decision to do the crime, old enough to bear the consequences

That does not really make complete sense. How do you draw the line between making the decision and being pressured into doing something. What if a 10 year old was caught? Did they make the decision or not?

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