Many people will have been surprised that two people convicted of money laundering and possessing money derived from drugs were only sentenced to a year in prison – and, as a result of time already served, are now free men.

They are right to be surprised.

Andrew Blatchley, 59, and Peter Sagos, 36, were implicated in a scheme to import what is understood to be $33 million worth of cannabis to Bermuda.

In fairness, they denied the charge of drugs importation and the Crown did not pursue it.

But Blatchley was found in possession of $27,000 in US cash on his yacht, while Sagos was found to have $18,820 in Bermuda currency along with $10,000 in US currency in his hotel room.

The Police failed to locate the cannabis that was alleged to have been brought to Bermuda and it may be that the prosecutors did not feel certain of getting a conviction on that charge and therefore accepted the lesser plea.

Even then, a money laundering conviction can carry a sentence of up to 25 years, but the prosecution asked for a sentence of 18 to 30 months.

And Judge Charles-Etta Simmons lowered that further to one year apiece.

In doing so, Mrs. Justice Simmons said she had taken into account the cooperation of the two accused and the ill health of Blatchley, who has prostate cancer.

As a practical matter, keeping Blatchley in prison when he required substantial medical treatment would have been a logistical problem and a financial drain for Bermuda.

And it can also be argued that the pair were more drug mules than drug lords.

Still, even many of the people who feel that possession of cannabis should be decriminalised, accept that drug traffickers and money launderers are in a different category.

Drug dealing and the money laundering that derives from it remains a scourge. Those who engage in it profit from the suffering and desperation of the user. They are the scum of the earth.

This newspaper worries about the message being sent to Bermuda residents – the two accused were non-Bermudians and non-resident – who can face a year in prison or more for possession of very small amounts of drugs, when Blatchley and Sagos are able to leave court and figuratively, if not literally, get on a plane and leave the Island free men.