NSW Man Peter Gardner Facing Chinese Court Now; May Face Death Penalty

NSW man Peter Gardner has today faced Guangzhou Intermediate Court, after his court date for trafficking methamphetamines was pushed forward by 6 months. 
He is charged with attempting to traffick 30kg of methamphetamines from Guangzhou to Sydney. The drugs have an Australian street worth of $18 million. 
In court, Gardner stated that he had been duped into taking the methamphetamines, and instead thought that he was carrying performance-enhancing peptides used by athletes. He said that he had made the run once before, with no problems, and so never thought twice that the substance was not performance-enhancing drugs. The bags that he was given were superglued shut, so he never checked what was inside the bags
He also stated that the bags were originally checked in under his partner, Kalynda Davis‘ name. When she was held back by airport staff for the contents, Gardner said that he went back and claimed the bags were his, as he still believed that the bags contained the peptides. 
Gardner was visibly weeping while giving his statement, saying,

“I was stupid. I thought it was so easy. I got ahead of myself. … This is the biggest mistake of my life.”

“I am sorry… I have broken the law.”
The Chinese courts have an extremely high rate of conviction, and Amnesty International states that China assigns the death penalty more than any other country in the world. 
The court is currently adjourned on a break, so Gardner has not yet received his sentence. The court will reconvene later tonight.

Story via SMH

Image: Sanghee Liu via SMH

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