HKSAR v. Law Ka Yin

DCCC126/2009

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

CRIMINAL CASE NO. 126 OF 2009

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Reasons for Sentence

1. Defendant, you have pleaded guilty to two charges of burglary.  Both the offences were committed on 9 January 2009 at the same estate in Aberdeen, Lei Tung Estate, but at different houses, the 1st charge at Tung Yip House and the other at Tung Cheong House.  The 1st charge concerns a storeroom of Hong Yip Service Company Limited and the 2nd charge concerns the storeroom of Shui On Construction Company Limited. 

2. On the early hours of 9 January 2009 at about 2.30 am, a police officer in plainclothes observed you tampering with the lock of the storeroom in charge 1.  She then saw you enter the storeroom in charge 1.  Subsequently, the police officer lost sight of you and about 2.49 am later that morning another police officer saw that the chain securing the storeroom in charge B was detached.  That officer went inside the storeroom in charge 2 and saw you inside.  Later, the officer who observed you entering the storeroom in charge A, arrived at the scene and identified you to be the same male.

3. At the time of the arrest you were carrying a black bag containing an electric mixer, a safety helmet, a pair of pliers and an 8 inch long iron rod.  Under caution, you admitted that you had prised the lock of the storeroom in charge 1 with the pliers but you did not take anything from that storeroom.  You claimed you entered the storeroom in charge 2 to find a toilet.  However, later the electric mixer found in the bag that you were carrying was positively identified by the subcontractor as his property.  The cost of the broken lock to repair was $300 in respect of charge 1.  Police confirmed nothing was missing from that storeroom in charge 1.

4. Your solicitor, Mr Ng, has made very full and detailed mitigation on your behalf.  You are 30 years of age and have 15 previous criminal convictions dating back to 1991 when you were just 12 years old.  You have been in breach of the law on and off since a young age and have many previous offences related to dishonesty.  You have one similar to burglary, five similar to theft, three attempted theft, one theft from vehicle and two of robbery amongst others that are not related to dishonesty offences.  You committed this offence two months after you were released from prison having served your last sentence.  As Mr Ng has recognised, your greatest mitigating factor is of course your plea of guilty showing your remorse. 

5. This burglary was of commercial premises and the usual starting point for burglary of commercial premises is one of 2½ years’ imprisonment.  However, in this case, defendant, I find there to be an aggravating factor in that you have a number of previous dishonesty offences and also, of course, one of burglary which I accept was committed now some 18 years ago.  You also had committed on this occasion two offences of burglary.

6. Taking these matters into account, I consider that the starting point of both these burglaries should be one of 33 months’ imprisonment and I give you the full one-third discount taking into account your plea of guilty, and that will reduce the term to one of 22 months’ imprisonment. 

7. I bear in mind, however, the principle of totality and the fact that there were two burglaries committed here and I order the sentence to be partly concurrent and partly consecutive, being 2 months of charge 2 to run consecutive to charge 1, making a total term of 24 months’ imprisonment for these two charges.

8. Just a matter to you, defendant, you are still young, you are 30 years of age.  Although you have a very bad criminal record, if you really feel as much as you do as your counsel says about your mother, you will try your very best to turn anew and start afresh.  You have a lifetime ahead of you, so I would really hope that your pleas in mitigation are sincere and that you will turn a new leaf.  You do not want to be spending your life as you have been for the last 18 years in and out of prison.