By CAM LUCADOU-WELLS
A SPRINGVALE mother has been jailed for her third drug trafficking offence after being discovered with ice and drug-dealing materials in a car driven erratically on the Monash Freeway.
Trang Thuy Pham, 30, appeared in Dandenong Magistrates’ Court on 22 February by video link due to being on remand for other matters.
She pleaded guilty to seven charges including trafficking ice, proceeds of crime, careless driving and unlicensed driving.
The court was told police intercepted Pham, who was swerving across lanes on the Monash Freeway, at Mount Waverley, shortly after midnight on 15 August.
Police prosecutor Senior Constable Tracey Arnold said Pham provided a false name and another person’s driver licence to police when pulled over.
That false name piqued the interest of police; that person had extensive priors for drug trafficking and possession.
During a search of the car, police found $8500 cash, zip-lock plastic bags, digital scales, a key safe, ice pipe and handwritten notes referring to payments and “amounts in grams”, Sen Const Arnold said.
A mobile phone and $50 cash were seized from Pham’s person.
In the divvy van, the accused was observed removing an object from down her pants and was then fully searched.
She was then found with a plastic bag containing ice, a drinking straw and $300.
Pham told police that she was using the cash to buy the vehicle from the third party – whose licence was first presented to police at the intercept.
She told police she was unaware of the drug paraphernalia in the car, and was unable to provide details on the “other people” driving the car and who had given her the seized iPhone 5s for her birthday.
Pham blamed her erratic driving on eating while behind the wheel.
Defence lawyer Effie Lagos said Pham, who two years ago completed a lengthy drug treatment court order, had been caught in a “vicious cycle of using” since she was 20.
Pham’s battles included heroin and ice addiction, Ms Lagos said.
“She was able to rid herself of heroin addiction but struggled to rid herself of ice.
“It’s not a situation where she’s trafficking and not using, which would be more aggravating. She’s a prolific user.”
Magistrate Clive Alsop said a jail term was “certain” when Pham had previous convictions for trafficking ice.
Mr Alsop said courts had to “send a message” to ice traffickers.
“You have a very sad history – there’s a couple of kids and the fact that you’ve been addicted to this stuff for some time.
“But being in the industry of selling ice, you’d be aware of what that stuff is doing to the community.”
Pham was fined $1800 and jailed for 12 months.
