2 women who had meth taped to thighs sentenced

HAGATNA, Guam — Two women caught at the Guam airport in 2015 with more than $1 million worth of methamphetamine taped to their thighs were sentenced Monday to at least two years in prison.

Between them, Tsz Kei Lee, 21, and Yau Li, 20, tried to smuggle in more than four pounds of methamphetamine, court documents state. The street value of the drugs was about $1.2 million, according to a federal agent.

The Chinese women flew from Hong Kong to Guam on the same United Airlines flight and arrived at A.B. Won Pat International Airport on Dec. 29, 2015, where a drug-detecting dog signaled to Guam Customs and Quarantine Agency officers that Lee had drugs, according to a court complaint. Another officer patted down Li and found meth taped to her thighs, the complaint states.

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Both women were promised 70,000 Hong Kong dollars, or a little more than $9,000, if they successfully delivered the drug packages, documents state.

Defense attorneys Jeffrey Moots and Leilani Lujan said their clients needed the money and both felt an implied threat to them or their family if they did not go through with the delivery. The person who recruited them, a friend of Lee, was persistent and knew where both women lived and their families, Lujan and Moots said. The recruiter reportedly made the trip before and told Lee it went smoothly, Lujan said.

“She was absolutely the sacrificial lamb,” Lujan said of her client, Lee. “What we have here is a drug mule.”

Attorney Moots also said his client, Li, was merely a drug mule.

Their flight, transportation and even their clothing were bought and arranged for them, Lujan said.

They were told to meet at a hotel, where the drugs were taped to them. They were given new dresses and airline tickets and told to wait for a phone call on Guam for further instructions, Moots said.

Moots said Li agreed to deliver the drugs because she just lost her job and it was an opportunity to come to Guam and make money. It didn't sound risky until the drugs were strapped to her, he said.

Court documents state they both pleaded guilty to one count of importing methamphetamine. A second charge of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine was dismissed.

Lee received a shorter sentence, of 24 months, to Li’s 37 months after the judge granted Lee a variance. The reason for the variance was sealed and not disclosed in open court. Both received a year of credit for time served.

Each woman had a little more than 1,000 grams of “ice,” between 95% to 98% pure, and had a total street value of more than $1.2 million, according to Avery Cepeda, special agent for U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

'Money was tempting'

Both women, who have been detained at Department of Corrections since December 2015, appeared in court dressed identically in navy blue T-shirts too large for their frames, paired with orange prison-issued pants and shackles on their ankles. They both wore glasses with black frames.

Reading in English from a handwritten letter, Lee said the money offered to her was tempting and she thought she was helping her friend.

She said she accepted full responsibility and apologized for her actions. Her parents flew in from Hong Kong for the sentencing, and her father, Puishing Lee, asked the judge for a lenient sentence.

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Li, who mostly spoke in Mandarin, said through an interpreter that she was sorry for what she did. She grew up poor and her family could not afford to travel to Guam for her sentencing. “I feel ashamed,” she said.

Both of them told Chief Judge Frances Tydingco-Gatewood that this would be the last time they'd commit a crime.

Defense lawyers and Assistant U.S. Attorney Marivic David argued over whether or not the defendants were considered minimal participants in the drug scheme.

David argued that Lee and Li were more culpable than the person who recruited them, the person who taped the drugs to their body and the person who bought them clothing, because all of those people chose not to smuggle the drugs internationally.

Both women expected money for their part in the scheme, but David said there’s no evidence that the recruiter, the person who taped the drugs and the person who bought dresses were paid.

Moots, however, said it’s likely that other people were paid. “Drug operations are not non-profit organizations,” he said.

After nearly two hours of discussion, the chief judge agreed the two women were minimal participants, which shortened their sentencing range.

Both may be deported and prohibited from returning to American soil.

Follow Jasmine Stole on Twitter: @StoleJasmine