Sentence doubled for pair who attempted to import more than 100kg of cocaineBy Jordanna SchrieverTopic:Cocaine19m ago19 minutes agoThu 8 May 2025 at 6:12amPolice seized more than 100 kilograms of cocaine hidden inside a shipment of luxury buses last year. (Supplied: Australian Federal Police)In short: Two Victorian men jailed for attempting to import more than 100 kilograms of cocaine into South Australia have had their prison terms more than doubled.The pair was re-sentenced to six years and nine months in prison after an initial sentence of three years.The Court of Appeal said the initial sentence was "so disproportionately low as to amount to an error of principle that undermines public confidence in the administration of justice".abc.net.au/news/sentence-doubled-on-appeal-over-cocaine-import-attempt/105267604Link copiedShareShare articleTwo Victorian men who were labelled "muppets" for attempting to import more than 100 kilograms of cocaine worth $17 million into South Australia have had their jail terms more than doubled on appeal.Rayn Sadik, 20, and Yousif Al-Asadi, 23, were jailed for three years with a non-parole period of 18 months in South Australia's District Court in January, but the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions appealed that sentence, suggesting it was "manifestly inadequate".On Thursday, the Court of Appeal granted the appeal and re-sentenced the men to six years and nine months in prison and set new non-parole periods of four years.In the appeal judgement, the court found that re-sentencing was required because "the length of the sentences were so disproportionately low as to amount to an error of principle that undermines public confidence in the administration of justice"."It is a remarkable feature of the sentences imposed in this case that they are out of step with the sentences relied on and the subject of submissions before the sentencing judge," the judgement states.The court said once other similar cases were considered, it was "clear that the sentences imposed in this case are too low".Previously, the court had heard both men pleaded guilty to one count of attempting to possess a commercial quantity of an unlawfully imported border controlled drug.It heard the pair was involved in the attempted importation of substances weighing 139kg, which contained "114.76 kilograms of cocaine with a purity of 82.5 per cent" early last year.The cocaine had a street value of $17.1 million.The cocaine was first imported to Western Australia hidden inside four luxury buses on board a cargo ship before the Australian Federal Police and Australian Border Force removed "139 brick-shaped wrapped in black plastic" and replaced them with an "inert substance" which they kept under surveillance as they were shipped into Port Adelaide.Four of the imported packages contained Apple Air Tag tracking devices.Initial sentence considered offenders' remorseWhen the men were originally sentenced in January, Judge Joana Fuller said that although the men knew they were doing something criminal, they had not understood the "nature or gravity" until they were inside the buses removing the packages."Objectively, the offending is extremely serious, the total street value of the cocaine is astronomical," she said."While I accept that each of you performed an essential role by collecting the unlawfully imported drugs — or what you thought were the unlawfully imported drugs — anyone who found themselves in similarly difficult circumstances would have been importuned to become involved in the same way you were."As Mr [David] Edwardson KC frankly put it; you were both muppets."Judge Fuller had said the pair had been instructed by their drug dealers to follow the drugs from WA to SA in order to pay off drug debts they had accumulated.She said she had considered the remorse, personal circumstances and lack of prior offending of both men into consideration when imposing a sentence.'No evidence' for judge's initial findingsIn the judgement, the court found Judge Fuller had "made something out of what she described as the pressure the respondents were under when they continued with their involvement once they realised the magnitude of the criminal enterprise"."There was no evidence or material before the sentencing judge to justify findings such as these," the judgement says.The judgement notes that while the men were not the main players, their involvement was "not fleeting" and they stood to gain financially.In both cases, the sentences were backdated to begin in February 2024, when the men were taken into custody.The men, who were originally eligible to apply for parole in August, will now not be eligible to apply until February 2028.Posted 19m ago19 minutes agoThu 8 May 2025 at 6:12amShare optionsCopy linkFacebookX (formerly Twitter)Top StoriesGreens leader Adam Bandt concedes seat, ending 15 years in parliamentTopic:ElectionsPhoto shows Adam Bandt press gallery doorstopMore women in Labor than ever but top jobs still going to menBAnalysis by Brett WorthingtonPhoto shows Anika Wells Amanda Rishworth Katie Gallagher Anne AlyAttorney-General Mark Dreyfus dumped from frontbench in factional carve-upLIVEPhoto shows Mark Dreyfus standing at the dispatch box in the federal parliament.Two men found guilty of murdering Indigenous schoolboy Cassius TurveyTopic:HomicidePhoto shows Cassius Turvey Forever 15Erin Patterson visibly upset as daughter gives evidence at murder trialLIVEPhoto shows A digital drawing of Erin Patterson wearing a pink shirtRelated storiesPair labelled 'muppets' jailed over attempted 'astronomical' cocaine importTopic:Drug OffencesPhoto shows Dozens of bricks of drugs wrapped and laid out on a blue tarpRelated topicsAdelaideCocaineCourtsDrug OffencesVICWATop StoriesGreens leader Adam Bandt concedes seat, ending 15 years in parliamentTopic:ElectionsPhoto shows Adam Bandt press gallery doorstopMore women in Labor than ever but top jobs still going to menBAnalysis by Brett WorthingtonAttorney-General Mark Dreyfus dumped from frontbench in factional carve-upTopic:Government and PoliticsTwo men found guilty of murdering Indigenous schoolboy Cassius TurveyTopic:HomicideErin Patterson visibly upset as daughter gives evidence at murder trialTopic:Law, Crime and JusticeJust InGovernment shouldn't tell parents how to discipline kids, Crisafulli saysTopic:Parenting8m ago8 minutes agoThu 8 May 2025 at 6:24amJail term doubled for 'muppets' involved in 100kg cocaine import attemptTopic:Cocaine19m ago19 minutes agoThu 8 May 2025 at 6:12amMore women in Labor than ever but top jobs still going to menBAnalysis by Brett Worthington21m ago21 minutes agoThu 8 May 2025 at 6:11amSoviet spacecraft will crash back to Earth within 48 hours, data suggestsTopic:Explainer22m ago22 minutes agoThu 8 May 2025 at 6:10amMore Just InBack to top