R v Dehghani; ex parte

The appellant, Dehghani, sought leave to appeal against the sentence imposed by the primary judge, arguing that it was inadequate given his partial cooperation with law enforcement. The appeal was brought under section 21E of the Crimes Act 1914 (Cth), which mandates that a person who cooperates with law enforcement agencies should receive a benefit in sentencing. The primary judge had sentenced the appellant to 10 years and 10 months imprisonment with a non-parole period of six years and six months for drug importation, along with concurrent terms for the money transactions. The appellant had partially cooperated at the pre-trial Basha inquiry and minimally cooperated at the trial of his co-offenders. The legal question before the court was whether the sentence was inadequate in light of the appellant's cooperation and whether it should be set aside and replaced with a new sentence.

The court considered the extent of the appellant's cooperation and its impact on the sentence. While the appellant had cooperated, it was deemed partial and minimal, particularly when compared to the full cooperation expected under section 21E of the Crimes Act. The court noted that the primary judge had recognised the appellant's cooperation but did not sufficiently weigh it in determining the sentence. The court found that the sentence was inadequate as it did not adequately reflect the appellant's cooperation and the mitigating effect it had on his culpability. The appeal was allowed, and the sentence was set aside. The court imposed a new sentence of 14 years imprisonment with a non-parole period of 7 years and 9 months. The court also declared that the period of 897 days served between 8 February 2007 and 24 July 2009 was imprisonment already served under the new sentence.