HKSAR v. Gu Jiaqi

DCCC 842/2019

[2020] HKDC 199

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

CRIMINAL CASE NO. 842 OF 2019

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Reasons for Sentence

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Charges

1.Defendant faces 2 charges.  Charge 1 is burglary.  Charge 2 is criminal damage.

Facts

2.The Defendant entered Hong Kong on the strength of a Two-way Entry Permit on 16^th August 2019 via Lok Ma Chau Spur Line Control Point.

1^st Charge

3.At about 10:00 p.m. on 16^th August 2019, Au Ching-yee (“PW1”) left her employer’s “G2000” branch (the “Shop”) at Shop Nos. G05-G06, Ground Floor, Pacific Plaza, No. 418 Des Voeux Road West, Sai Wan in Hong Kong, after having checked that all doors and gates were closed and locked.

4.At about 7:00 a.m. on 17^th August 2019, PW1 received a call from the Shop’s security company and upon returning to it, found that one of the glass side doors of the Shop was damaged.  The glass door’s top hinge was broken off and so tilted outwards towards the streets.  One windbreaker, one dress and one shirt had gone missing from it.  They were worth HK$1,748.  It had cost the Shop about HK$6,000 to repair the damaged glass door.

5.The CCTV footage of the Shop shows that the Defendant was in the Shop at about 6:56 a.m. on the day.  Being unable to find any valuables inside some of the drawers next to the locked cashier tills, the Defendant tried on the windbreaker as he continued to roam in the Shop.

6.At about 2:00 p.m. on 18^th August 2019, the Defendant, who was wearing the windbreaker stolen from the Shop and had the dress stolen from the Shop in a bag he was holding onto, was intercepted by the police outside Western Police Station.  The Defendant had on him cash of HK$126 and RMB410.

7.In his subsequent video recorded interview, the Defendant, in the presence of his younger sister, admitted to having taken the two items of apparel found on him from the Shop.  He had thrown away the shirt he had taken away from the Shop.  He had entered the Shop by pulling open its locked door even though the Shop was closed then.  The Defendant claimed to have come to Hong Kong to do some shopping.

8.Having entered the Shop as a trespasser, the Defendant stole therein.

2^nd Charge

9.The Defendant was then detained alone in Cell No. 9 (“Cell No. 9”) of Western Police Station at No. 280 Des Voeux Road West, Sai Wan in Hong Kong.

10.At about 7:00 p.m. on 19^th August 2019, the Defendant was found to be yelling emotionally in Cell No. 9, the paint on the walls of which had been substantially scrapped off.  Pieces of dried paint of various sizes were left scattered across the different parts of the cell.  The wooden door of the shower room situated next to Cell No. 9 was found to be damaged.  The lower hinge of the door had been completely pulled off, while the upper hinge had been pulled to become loosened.  The various parts of the lower hinge were left on the floor inside Cell No. 9 with some of the pieces of dried paint.  Cell No. 9 was the only cell located next to the shower room.

11.The Defendant had reached out his arm through the trapdoor of Cell No. 9, pulled the wooden door of the shower room towards the cell and began shaking it until the hinges became loosened, the course of which was captured by CCTV footage.

12.It had cost the police HK$250 to repair the wooden door and Cell No. 9.

13.When cautioned in relation to the damage to Cell No. 9 and the damaged wooden door, the Defendant, in the presence of his younger sister, stated in his subsequent video recorded interview that he was only conducting renovation work for the police.  He had reached the door of the shower room through the trapdoor of Cell No. 9.

14.The Defendant, without lawful excuse, damaged the walls of Cell No. 9 and the door of the shower room next to it, being property belonging to another, intending to damage such property or being reckless as to whether such property would be damaged.

Mitigation

15.Defendant is now 24 years of age.  He was born in Mainland China and received education there.  He has a clear record in Hong Kong.  His parents and young sister are in Mainland China. 

16.He was diagnosed schizophrenia on 12 September 2018.  Before sentence, two psychiatrists confirmed that he had been suffering from mental illness and recommended hospital order for 3 months.  His counsel Mr. Pun asks me to adopt such recommendation in lieu of imprisonment. 

Sentence

17.I agree that the only viable option is hospital order.  The length shall be 3 months as recommended by the 2 psychiatrists.  I make an order for a concurrent sentence for both charges.