A grey-haired widow wept uncontrollably yesterday as she was sentenced to eight years in jail for drug trafficking.
Lo Woon-ching, 60, had pleaded guilty to taking part in the trafficking of Ecstasy tablets from the Netherlands to Hong Kong.
Partner Chan Yin-na, 42, who admitted the same charge, was jailed for seven years.
Prosecutor Sally Yam told the Court of First Instance that Lo and Chan had been arrested by Narcotics Bureau officers in the airport arrival hall on June 15.
Each had more than 25,000 Ecstasy tablets, worth more than $3.6 million, in their suitcases, Ms Yam said.
The court heard the pair had flown to Paris and taken a train to the Netherlands to pick up the drugs.
They were told they would receive $50,000 if they handed the suitcases to a man identified as 'Liang Chai' at the Hong Kong airport. Both admitted they knew they were carrying Ecstasy.
For Lo, lawyer Wong Tin-kwong said that although the case involved a large quantity of drugs, her role was only that of courier. He said she had financial burdens.
Judge Anthony To Kwai-fung said Lo's action could cause great harm to society and could not be justified by her financial problems.
For Chan, counsel Freddy Won said psychiatric reports indicated she was mildly retarded and easily exploited.