It’s been fifteen months since I was remanded in custody at the Lo Wu Correctional Institution. Back in March 2020, I was working as a part-time waitress and managing my online purchasing business at the time. Due to the social events and COVID-19 pandemic, my workload and income drastically reduced. I felt financially insecure.
One day, I was wandering around Mong Kok and bumped into a friend which we haven’t contacted for ages. We chatted for a while and updated each other with our latest status. He mentioned that he could hook me up to earn some quick cash.
He called me the next day, and said he urgently needed to “deliver something to someone”. I met up with him. He gave me a shopping bag filled with personal items like a packet of tissue paper, a mirror, a comb, and a small zipper bag in a cute pattern. He asked me to deliver it to his friend and would give me some “reward” for helping. I took off to the designated place as instructed. Unfortunately, I was stopped by an undercover police officer for an ID check and a search. That was the very first time in my life that I got searched by the police. The zipper bag contained drugs! I tried to call my friend but in vain. I was so shocked. The drug was found inside a bag that I was carrying and I was taken to the police station. I have never touched drugs in my life. I blame myself for not checking everything in detail and blindly trusted my “friend”. I could only plead guilty under such circumstances.
I was locked up in the police station for two days, then got transported to Kowloon City Magistrates’ Courts for trial. I was then sent to the Lo Wu Correctional Institution here. Life inside here is rigid. Having no freedom is the most horrible feeling. Without a mobile phone, every day feels long and filled with despair. It’s hot here from day to night in summer and freezing in winter. Meal options are limited as well. Every day it feels the “same”.
It’s heartbreaking to know that my parents and friends are worried about me, and I don’t know what to do with my future. I can only communicate with the outside world through letters, catching up on all I have missed in a world of rapid communications out there. It’s not easy to live such a “primitive life” here.
Please protect yourself. Do not trust others easily. If you’re in a situation like mine, be very cautious and check everything inside the bag. Be alert to approaching strangers. Say no to any situation when you suspect drugs are involved. Your future will be ruined and you need to face criminal liability. Don’t lose your judgment over some quick cash.
Peace.
Note: This is an English translation of the original letter in Chinese.