Hoang Van Dam, 47, granted bail on charges he dealt heroin near a Canberra kindergarten
A man accused of burying heroin packages along the fenceline of a childcare centre has made a strange request inside a courtroom.
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An alleged heroin trafficker who has spent more than two weeks behind bars asked if he could hug the magistrate who granted him bail on Wednesday.
Hoang Van Dam, 47, earlier this month pleaded not guilty to five counts of heroin trafficking.
He was charged after allegedly selling the drug to an undercover police officer, including deals which took place near a kindergarten and near schools in Belconnen.
Special Magistrate Margaret Hunter on Wednesday granted Van Dam bail, despite prosecutors arguing his family had close ties to the drug world and that his previous history for heroin trafficking made him a risk of reoffending.
After being granted bail, Van Dam, wearing a prison-issued blue jumper and speaking through a Vietnamese interpreter, said: “Is it possible to give you a hug, because I feel so happy?”.
Ms Hunter said: “No, it’s not.”
The court has previously heard the undercover sting which roped Van Dam, saw him meet his customer, walk off and appear to dig up packages of the drug he had buried in an apparent attempt to minimise the risk of being arrested with heroin on him.
He would then trade the drug for cash, taking a total of $47,000 in five deals he did with the undercover cop.
During one of the deals, the heroin was buried along the fence line of a childcare centre.
Prosecutors argued unsuccessfully that Van Dam’s apparent willingness to deal drugs exposed the community — in this case young children — to danger, and justified him being refused bail.
Ms Hunter said Van Dam has previously spent long periods on bail while serious drugs charges were making their way through the courts, and had shown he could comply with bail conditions.
Van Dam will be required to sign a $50,000 surety and surrender his passport before being released, among a string of other conditions.