A villager who hid in the mainland for more than a decade after police caught him with almost 1kg of morphine was jailed for 131/2 years yesterday after he returned to Hong Kong to face the consequences. It was the prospect of never seeing his ailing father again that prompted Cheung Chun-yin, 34, to come out of hiding and own up to a crime for which he had successfully dodged responsibility. Cheung yesterday pleaded guilty to one count of trafficking in a dangerous drug. Prosecutor Michael Arthur told the Court of First Instance that Cheung was stopped by two motorcycle policeman in Shataukok at 1.20pm on July 13, 1992, during a normal road block. Cheung, who was behind the wheel of a light goods vehicle, panicked when he saw the police and sped off with them in hot pursuit. The court heard Cheung nearly crashed into another car and ran his van into nearby bushes. While one officer chased Cheung, another policeman saw three blocks of suspected dangerous drugs lying on the passenger seat. They were later found to be 936.3g of morphine. After unsuccessfully trying to chase Cheung through the bushes, a policeman left his partner to guard the van and went to a nearby shop to call his station. As the officer was leaving the store he and Cheung again crossed paths and the two men wrestled each other to the ground. During the struggle, two residents of Kai Kuk Shu Ha village ran over to help Cheung, a fellow villager. One pushed the policeman from behind, allowing Cheung to escape. Cheung was put on the wanted list and remained in hiding until April 8 last year when he turned himself in to police.