HKSAR v. Lee Hung Fat
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DCCC669/2012 IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION CRIMINAL CASE NO. 669 OF 2012 ----------------------
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--------------------- Reasons for Sentence --------------------- 1.Defendant, you have pleaded guilty to 11 offences of burglary, each contrary to sections 11(1)(b) and (4) of the Theft Ordinance, to two offences of Theft, each contrary to section 9 of the same ordinance, that being Cap. 210, and also to one offence, inhalation of dangerous drugs, contrary to sections 8(1)(b) and (2) of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, Cap. 134. 2.You admitted the brief facts and I convicted you. The facts were as follows. Charge 1 3.Around 9.30 pm on 26 April 2011, PW1, a student of Hong Kong University placed her Notebook computer and charger inside an unlocked cabinet inside a classroom K317 which is on the third floor of the Knowles Building, Hong Kong University, which was only accessible to students and staff. The next day in the evening she found it to be missing. She reported the matter to the police. CCTV footage showed you take the lift up to the floor of the classroom at about 5.39 am on 27 April 2011, going inside the classroom and then walking downstairs at about 5.46 am. 4.At about 10 pm on 30 May 2011, PW3, a Hong Kong University student saw you wondering near the male washroom. He confronted you and you fled. At about 6.15 pm on 1 June 2011, PW3 saw you again at Hong Kong University. You fled when PW3 tried to intercept you. He pursued you and you discarded a bag on the staircase of the KK Leung Building and escaped. PW3 reported to the police. 5.That day, another Hong Kong University student found your wallet at the staircase. It contained your identity card. She handed into security who in turn handed it to the police. Upon checking the bag, PW1’s computer and a Hong Kong U access card in the name of Lam Lai, PW2, were found and that is charge 2. Subsequently PW2 confirmed she had lost her handbag containing her access card on 26 May 2011. Charge 3 6.At around 7.30 pm on 9 January of this year, PW6, a student of Chinese University, placed her rucksack containing a wallet, $100, three bank cards and her ID card on a sofa in classroom 106, Lower Ground Floor Science Centre Block, Chinese University, which was only open to students and staff and then she left. Another student, PW7, also put his rucksack containing his wallet, $400, a jacket, an ID card and two bank cards on the sofa and left. They returned on the morning of 10 January to find them missing. Charge 4 7.On 13 January of this year, PW8, a student of Chinese University, kept her Notebook computer inside dormitory Room 607 on the 6th Floor of the Hang Seng Hall and left Hong Kong. On 28 January of this year, she was informed by her roommates it was missing. She confirmed this on her return and informed the police. Charge 5 8.Around 3.30 am on 28 January of this year, student PW9 left her dormitory Room 609, 6th Floor, Hang Seng Hall. On her return at 8 am, she found her handbag containing a wallet, ID card, Octopus card, $100, a bank card, a bundle of keys and Notebook computer to be missing. She informed the police. 9.On 9 February of this year, a cleaner found the handbag and wallet on the roof of another building. CCTV captured you entering the dormitory at 2.51 am on 28 January, taking the lift and leaving at 3.15 am. Charge 6 10.Around 8 am on 16 March of this year, student PW11 checked her Notebook computer was inside a cabinet in the art room on the 3rd Floor of the Cheng Ming Building. Only students and staff were allowed there. On her return on 19 March it was gone. She called the police. 11.At around 10 pm on 17 March of this year, student PW10 placed a Notebook computer on a desk in the art room. On her return at 2 pm the next day it was gone. She informed the police. 12.CCTV captured you entering the art room at about 5.54 am on 18 March and leaving at 6.23 am. Charge 7 13.Around 6 pm on 18 March of this year, PW12, a research assistant in the Biology Department, kept his camera in a locker inside his office at Room 208 to 210 of the Run Run Shaw Science Building. Only staff had access. On 27 March of this year, he opened his locker and found it missing. He reported this to the police. Charges 8 and 9 14.Around midnight on 22 March of this year, student PW13 hung her clothes in the specified room at her dormitory in the Ground Floor of Daisy Li Hall. On her return in the afternoon of 23 March she found two bras missing. 15.At about 7.45 am on 22 March of this year, PW14, a worker of Daisy Li Hall hung her clothes in the same room. On her return the next morning she found a T-shirt missing. 16.CCTV captured you stealing PW14’s T-shirt and two bras around 11.45 pm on 22 March of this year. At around 2 am the next day you returned and stole another T-shirt and some bras. The police were informed. Charges 10 and 11 17.Discovering luggage stored by students on the 5th Floor of the Chan Chun Ha Hostel had been tampered with, a workman reviewed the CCTV footage and saw you enter the laundry room on two occasions: 1) about 5.30 am on 29 April of this year when you stole a T-shirt and bra; 2) about 5.46 am on 6 May of this year when you stole four garments and a pair of trousers. Charge 13 18.In the evening of 15 May of this year, PW17, a research assistant, left his mobile phone in an office, Room 101, Run Run Shaw Science Building. Only staff and students are allowed entry. That same evening, PW18, another research assistant, left her Notebook computer there. When they returned the next morning, both were missing. The police were called. Charge 12 19.At around about 1.10 am on 16 May of this year, PW16, a security guard, smelt smoke from a disabled toilet on the 5th Floor of the Ho Tim Hall. She tried to open the door but it was locked. While calling for assistance, a male dashed from the washroom and fled. She found a cigarette box with a folded banknote, a lighter, tin foil and plastic bag containing suspected dangerous drugs. Later analysis showed it to contain 0.60 grammes of crystalline solid containing methamphetamine hydrochloride which is Ice. 20.At about 4.40 pm on 25 May of this year, PW20 and PW21, security guards, saw and kept you under observation in a canteen. PW22, the chief security guard, then came and intercepted you. They subdued you until police arrived. PC9557 searched you and found PW17’s mobile phone in your pocket. Under caution, you admitted stealing it and a further search revealed PW19’s student card and a dormitory key card. You admitted their theft. 21.In the later video-recorded interview, you made further admissions and also admissions as to disposal of some of the goods by selling them. You admitted to buying the Ice from a male in Sha Tin. 22.You admitted to a lengthy criminal record having 11 court appearances including 12 convictions for theft and several instances of sexual misconduct. Given that record and the number and nature of the present offences, I decided to obtain more information about you prior to sentence and thereby ordered a Probation officer’s background report, a psychological report and a report as to suitability for DATC as you had previous convictions relating to drugs. I did place on record that given the nature of the present offences that a DATC order was very unlikely no matter what the recommendation was. I felt it was necessary to establish your level of addiction, if any. Those reports are now before the court. They are extremely detailed and extremely helpful. Ms Wong indicated to me that she had explained the contents of the reports to you and you accepted them. I note that you are no longer considered to be drug-dependant but you are deemed to be in need of psychological intervention. 23.On your behalf, Ms Wong entered mitigation. She repeated that you accepted the contents and opinions in the three reports presented to court. She dealt first with your background and present circumstances. She told me that you are a man of 35, single, living alone and educated to Form 5. You do have a stable girlfriend. That you come from humble beginnings and a broken home, your parents being divorced some years ago. After leaving school you had various jobs. These include restaurant worker, insurance agent, fast-food worker and you had in fact obtained some success in this area of your life. Your record revealed a series of offences of sexual misconduct. I was told that since the age of 18 you had harboured unnatural sexual fantasies towards young girls. You had exposed yourself on occasion and hid in toilets in order to peep at females. You felt that after taking dangerous drugs you became sexually aroused and lost self-control. You hoped to enrol in the voluntary drugs withdrawal programme, however I did note that the DATC report indicated that you were no longer considered to be drug-dependant. 24.Quite rightly, Ms Wong submitted that the psychological report was the most important report. Therein one finds chronicles of your profound and diverse sexual deviation. In that report they are adequately dealt with and explained, I have no need to repeat them. Apart from substance abuse, you are considered to be psychiatrically stable. However, the conclusion is that psychological intervention is highly recommended in this case to address your problems. 25.Turning to the offences themselves, Ms Wong submitted you committed these out of a need to raise cash to pay for an operation for your girlfriend and of course from your profoundly disturbed psychological condition. In mitigation she pointed out that no weapon was used, there was no breaking and entering, no one was threatened or injured and you acted alone. She told me that many of the goods had been recovered and provided a chart which explained those that had. She submitted the value of the goods not recovered was relatively modest. She reminded the court that you had pleaded guilty to 11 burglaries, two of which were of domestic premises, two thefts and one offence involving dangerous drugs. 26.She referred me to the case of Secretary for Justice v Chan Tsz-lung CAAR 4/1998. In that case the defendant pleaded guilty to 15 offences of burglary and one of possession of an offensive weapon. This was an Application for Review of the sentence imposed by the District Court. In allowing that application, the Court of Appeal increased the sentence to one of 40 months’ imprisonment for the burglaries plus 6 months for the offensive weapon. Ms Wong submitted the facts in that case were more serious than the present case, the defendant had not acted alone, being of very poor record and in possession of a weapon. She concluded by asking the court for leniency on your behalf. 27.I turn now to the sentences. This is a very lengthy and extremely serious catalogue of offences. You have targeted two universities, or more particularly university students and staff as easy prey to steal from. This included the theft of underwear to indulge your deviant sexual fantasies. In your favour, I do note that on arrest you were entirely cooperative. You are a man of undistinguished record having previous offences of dishonesty, sexual misconduct and one previous conviction being related to drugs. 28.It is very clear from the psychological assessment that you have severe and profound psychological problems. Ms Wong referred to a tendency towards a liking for young girls which is suggestive of paedophilia. Other identifiable traits include exhibitionism, voyeurism and cross‑dressing. 29.In your favour, I accept that you acted alone, no violence was offered, there was no break-in and no ransacking. The goods recovered were not of the highest value, I accept that. What is abundantly clear to me that if you do not address your psychological problems and your habit of using drugs then you are very likely, in my opinion, to be a threat. Having said that, this court does not sentence on potential, this court sentences you for what you have actually done. 30.The authority produced by Ms Wong is extremely helpful. I do accept that compared to this case there are certain aggravating features but this case must be decided on its particular facts. Those facts include two domestic burglaries, the deliberate targeting of a class of society and I do note that the authority is in itself of some age. I have taken into account the contents of all the reports and all the mitigation advanced on your behalf. The following sentences will be imposed:-
31.Applying the principle of totality, all sentences on charges 4 to 14 inclusive will be served concurrently to each other and concurrently to the period imposed on charges 1 to 3. You will therefore go to prison for 40 months.
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