The evidence showed that the defendant had developed a close relationship, a sexual one, with a person known as Ah Kuen
(阿娟) who operated a mah-jong place in Yuen Long at the material time.
On the day in question, Ah Kuen(阿娟) was not present at the mah-jong place. The defendant arrived there sometime in the morning and sat around playing with his mobile phone while other persons came to the mah-jong place to play mah-jong. The deceased, Ah Lung, arrived sometime after 3.00 pm. Ah Lung greeted those present and asked people to play mah-jong, including the defendant, as one of the two mah-jong tables was vacant. The defendant declined to play, saying that he had no money. Ah Lung offered to lend the defendant $2,000 to play to which the defendant also declined. Ah Lung then sat down to play with three other players.
After playing about two games, the defendant suddenly and without warning took a chopper from the kitchen area of the mah-jong place and chop at the shoulder near the neck of Ah Lung from behind. The defendant did not stop after this one chop. He continued to chop Ah Lung even after Ah Lung had gone to another part of the mah-jong place close to the window side under the air-conditioner. While the defendant denied in court that he continued to chop Ah Lung after Ah Lung had gone to the area under the air-conditioner and had sat down protecting his head with his hands or arms, evidence from some of the eye-witnesses who have seen the defendant chopping Ah Lung after Ah Lung had gone over there, the amount of blood that can be seen around the area where Ah Lung was eventually found and the number and extent of deep cut wounds on Ah Lung’s head, cutting through the skull bone of Ah Lung indicated that the defendant had chopped down at Ah Lung’s head from a higher position. The wounds sustained by Ah Lung on his arms were also consistent with defensive wounds. After the chopping, the defendant went downstairs and made a report to the police. Ambulance came and conveyed Ah Lung to the Pok Oi Hospital where Ah Lung was pronounced dead upon arrival.
Dr Mok, a forensic pathologist, conducted an autopsy on the deceased four days later and found multiple cuts and wounds on the deceased’s head and body. The cause of death was multiple chop and cut wounds. The defendant admitted he had caused the death of Ah Lung. He contended that he should not be found guilty of murder as he did not have the intention to kill or to cause Ah Lung really serious bodily harm. He said he should be found guilty of manslaughter by unlawful and dangerous act.
Alternatively, the defendant said that he was provoked by the deceased Ah Lung, so he should be found guilty of manslaughter on the basis of provocation. As for provocation, the defendant testified that Ah Lung had assaulted him on three previous occasions prior to the date of chopping. He gave details of how he was strangled by Ah Lung in the street, pointed at his neck or throat with a knife by Ah Lung at the mah-jong place early in the morning when he stayed the night there and poked at and hit on the head with an iron rod by Ah Lung at the mah-jong place, three different incidents. He said that the way Ah Lung asked him to play mah-jong, and offered him a loan to play when he had already said he did not want to play as he had no money amounted to provoking him, even though Ah Lung’s attitude or tone was friendly.
The defendant was, in effect, saying that what happened on 18 October 2019 at the mah-jong place was the last straw. He thought about the three previous incidents and got angrier and angrier, so he picked up the chopper and chopped Ah Lung.
By returning a verdict of guilty of murder after they were given clear directions that it was for the prosecution to prove that the defendant had committed murder and that it was for the prosecution to disprove provocation, the jury must have rejected the defence of provocation.
In law there is only one sentence I can pass for an adult person convicted of murder, and that is life imprisonment. So for the offence of murder, the defendant is sentenced to life imprisonment.