R v Ochante - [2025] NZHC 624

IN THE HIGH COURT OF NEW ZEALAND TAURANGA REGISTRY

I TE KŌTI MATUA O AOTEAROA TAURANGA MOANA ROHE

CRI-2023-004-8430

[2025] NZHC 624

THE KING

v

PEDRO DEL CARPIO OCHANTE

Hearing: 24 March 2025 (at Hamilton)

Appearances:

A Pollett and T Taane for Crown W T Nabney for Defendant

Sentence:

24 March 2025

SENTENCING REMARKS OF LANG J

Solicitors/counsel:
Pollett Legal, Crown Solicitor, Tauranga W T Nabney, Tauranga

R v DEL CARPIO OCHANTE [2025] NZHC 624 [24 March 2025]

[1] Mr Del Carpio Orchante, you appear for sentence having pleaded guilty to a charge of importing 13 kilograms of the Class A controlled drug cocaine into New Zealand. The maximum sentence for this offence is life imprisonment.1

[2] I record that I have declined an application by the Crown to amend the particulars in the Crown Charge Notice so that they refer to 15.49 kilograms of cocaine rather than 13 kilograms as was previously the case. You entered your guilty plea on the basis of a charge and summary of facts, both of which referred to 13 kilograms of cocaine. I consider you should be sentenced on that basis. However, in practical terms the difference between the two quantities is immaterial.

Background

[3] The summary of facts records that you are 43 years of age and are a Peruvian national. You were a crew member on a container vessel that berthed at the Port of Tauranga on 16 January 2024. The vessel had originally sailed from Panama.

[4] In the early hours of 17 January 2024, you were stopped at the gate of the port when you attempted to leave the port premises on foot. The security staff at the entrance gate were suspicious of the clothing you were wearing and they contacted Customs officials. When they arrived, you admitted to being in possession of drugs that were strapped to your body. You were to deliver these to persons who were to be waiting nearby.

[5] When the Customs officers searched you, they found four one-kilogram bricks of cocaine strapped to your body. You were also in possession of a cellphone.

[6] Later the same day, the Customs officers executed a search warrant on the cabin you occupied on the vessel. There they located nine further bricks of cocaine together with two mobile phones. When the Customs officers subsequently spoke to you about your offending, you told them that your family was in grave danger from persons connected with the importation.

1 Section 6(2)(a).

[7] You said the cocaine that you imported was originally destined for Australia. However, the vessel was unable to berth in Brisbane and you were then instructed to bring the drugs ashore when the vessel arrived in Tauranga. You have pleaded guilty on the basis that you proposed to carry all 13 bricks of cocaine ashore in Tauranga.

Starting point

[8] The first step in the sentencing process is to select a starting point for the sentence to be imposed on you. This is the sentence that…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Continue reading R v Ochante

Details

AGLC: R v Ochante [2025] NZHC 624
Case: [2025] NZHC 624
Decision Date: 24 March 2025

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The High Court of New Zealand, Tauranga Registry, dealt with a case involving Pedro Del Carpio Ochante, a Peruvian national, who pleaded guilty to importing 13 kilograms of cocaine into New Zealand. The maximum penalty for this offence is life imprisonment. Ochante, a crew member on a container vessel that had originally sailed from Panama, was apprehended at the Port of Tauranga when attempting to leave the premises with four kilograms of cocaine strapped to his body. An additional nine kilograms of cocaine was found in his cabin on the vessel. The Crown sought to amend the charge to reflect 15.49 kilograms of cocaine but the court declined this, as Ochante pleaded guilty based on the 13 kilograms figure.

The court had to determine an appropriate starting point for Ochante’s sentence. Given the absence of a guideline judgment, the court referred to the principles in Zhang v R and Berkland v R, which suggested a starting point slightly lower than that for methamphetamine cases. The court found Ochante's role as a carrier for drug trafficking to be significant, but not as serious as those higher in the organisation. The court opted for a starting point of eleven years imprisonment, considering Ochante's role and mitigating factors. The Crown argued for a starting point of 12 to 13 years, while the defence suggested no more than ten years. The court took into account Ochante's age, lack of criminal history, and remorse, applying discounts totalling 48 months to the starting point.

Ultimately, the court sentenced Ochante to seven years imprisonment, reflecting the agreed starting point minus the discounts for his guilty plea, clean criminal record, age, and the difficulty he would face serving the sentence in a foreign country. The court emphasised the importance of New Zealand not being perceived as an easy target for drug traffickers. Ochante will be deported upon completion of his sentence, with the exact timing to be determined by the parole authorities.

Orders