After pleading guilty to methamphetamine supply and sentenced to six year’s jail, Boon Hooi Cheah will have assets seized following a High Court ruling he benefited to the tune of $2.1 million as proceeds of crime.
It is common practice for convicted criminals to negotiate with police how much will be surrendered under the Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Act. Cheah chose to go to trial in the High Court, arguing his drug profits were minimal. Once police have stated their assessment of the gross revenue generated, it is for those convicted to prove revenue came from legitimate sources.
In a 2016 drugs bust, police seized cash and methamphetamine from Cheah’s home in the Auckland suburb of Avondale together with a diary recording drug sales for the previous two months. Sales averaged $1300 per day. These figures, extrapolated to cover the seven years police claim he was dealing, resulted in estimated cash sales totalling $2.1 million. Cheah protested. He said he lived a frugal lifestyle, supported by income from hairdressing and selling cosmetics. He was previously employed by L’Oreal and claimed he had stockpiled cosmetics given him as reward for being a top sales performer. No taxable income was declared to Inland Revenue for this supposed employment, or for his drug dealing. Justice Grice said Cheah was not a credible witness when it came to these explanations. No allowance was made for the cost of Cheah’s methamphetamine purchases. The Act allows seizure of ‘proceeds of crime’ not ‘profits of crime’. Earlier ‘proceeds of crime’ cases have disallowed deductions for dealers’ costs in purchasing drugs for supply; it would lead to practical difficulties determining costs of drug trading in what is a hidden illegal market.
Justice Grice ordered confiscation from Cheah of $378,500 in cash and bank accounts and ordered sale of his half interest in a property on Great North Road in Avondale.
Commissioner of Police v. Cheah – High Court (31.10.18)
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