Downfall of a drug smuggler
Hui Zhang found guilty after disguising nearly 400kg of pseudoephedrine as breadcrumbs for restaurant
An Auckland man has been convicted of smuggling more pseudoephedrine into New Zealand than anybody else. Hui Zhang disguised nearly 400kg of the drugs needed to make methamphetamine as “breadcrumbs” from China destined for an Auckland restaurant, which he used as a hub for distribution through his network across the city.
At the beginning of his trial in June in the High Court at Auckland, the 44-year-old admitted 34 pseudoephedrine supply charges as “simply a link in the chain” but denied the three more serious charges of importation.
But after deliberating for two weeks, the jury found him guilty of smuggling two shipments of Class-B drugs — totalling 392kg — although it acquitted him of a third importation of 91kg hidden inside a water cylinder despite his fingerprints being found inside the sealed container.
Zhang now faces a prison sentence likely to be longer than the 13 years and eight months recently given to Van Thanh Tran, who pleaded guilty to smuggling a 250kg shipment after being targeted in Operation Ghost.
Tran and Zhang were at the top of their respective syndicates dealing pseudoephedrine, once the active ingredient in cold and flu medicines available over the counter in New Zealand, but which are now available only on prescription.
Despite running their own networks independently, and with no evidence of any contact between them, Zhang and Tran shared the services of a “delivery man”, Ziyang Ma, who would courier parcels on their instructions.
Pseudoephedrine is extracted from a medicine widely available in China called ContacNT — with 223g of the pink, yellow and red granules from 1000 capsules sold as a “set” for $8000 to $12,000 on the black market.
Fingerprints belonging to Zhang led police to the restaurant in downtown Auckland, which cannot be named, where a covert camera captured drug deals in the carpark behind the building.
Surveillance photographs show Lulu Zhang, who worked at the restaurant, passing a bag holding newspaper-wrapped parcels to Guo Pei Chen sitting inside a silver Lexus.
The Crown case was that Lulu Zhang controlled the supply on Hui Zhang’s behalf, when he was out of the country, while Chen was a dealer who purchased drugs from the syndicate. Bugged phone conversations revealed a code, according to the Crown. If Chen called to book a table for 12 people, this meant he was actually asking for 12 sets of pseudoephedrine.
Defence lawyer Rachael Reed, on behalf of Lulu Zhang, told the jury her client handled deliveries at the restaurant but did not know the parcels were drugs.
Her client was acquitted of four supply charges but convicted on six, while Chen was convicted of 13 charges and acquitted on three. The Herald can now reveal he was once banned from the SkyCity high-roller room for loan sharking.
Another of Zhang’s customers, Desmond Sharp, admitted 13 pseudoephedrine charges, but denied making methamphetamine with his brother Desmond Loke.
The brothers were living at Sharp’s home in Flatbush, where police found methamphetamine and $54,000 in cash, as well as equipment which can be used to cook P.
The jury found both brothers guilty of the serious methamphetamine charge. Sharp also supplied 22 sets of pseudoephedrine to Michael Geoffrey Neems, who was found guilty of possession of a ClassB drug for supply.
The jury was shown surveillance videos and photographs, as well as listening to intercepted conversations and a woman arrested in Operation Gem who turned to give evidence for the Crown against the others.
Witness Y, whose identity is suppressed, said she would help organise drug deals between Hui Zhang, because his English was poor, and customers such as Sharp.
She said Zhang always referred to the drugs as “the stuff” and these secretive conversations were held on a cellphone she was allowed to use only for drug deals, not daily life.
On one occasion, Witness Y said Zhang talked about “his stuff arriving in New Zealand”. On another occasion, Zhang said “stuff coming into New Zealand” had been seized by the authorities and he would “lose a lot of money”.
She was also shown surveillance photographs taken by the police, which she confirmed showed one of these drug deals taking place in east Auckland.
As well as the covert surveillance, the jury was also shown physical evidence in Operation Gem.
Police raided a storage house in Botany Downs in October 2013 where they discovered a locked box holding 47 sets of pseudoephedrine wrapped in newspaper, as well as empty packets of “chicken breader”, or bread crumbs.
This turned out to be an important clue.
Analysis of shipping documents revealed a container holding 142kg of “chicken breader” was delivered to the restaurant five months earlier. The police now believed Hui Zhang was smuggling pseudoephedrine from China inside the bags of breadcrumbs.
They listened in to the bugged conversations between Zhang and a woman in China which revealed another ship was “on the water” and arrived at the Ports of Auckland 10 days after Zhang was arrested in December 2013.
The shipment was addressed to Zhang’s restaurant and held 10 boxes of chicken breader. Inside the packets was 235kg of pseudoephedrine and 15kg of pure ephedrine — “A massive seabound shipment that Zhang needed to breathe life into his business,” Crown prosecutor Bruce Northwood said in his opening address.