A DCCC389/2010 A
IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE
B HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION B
CRIMINAL CASE NO. 389 OF 2010
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C C
HKSAR
D D
v.
E Chau Yui-sing E
F F
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G Before: H H Judge Tallentire G
Date: 18 May 2010 at 11.57 am
Present: Ms Samantha Chiu, PP, of the Department of Justice,
H for HKSAR H
Mr Lok Hing-wah, of Lok Hing Wah & Co., assigned by
I
the Director of Legal Aid, for the defendant I
Offence: Assisting the passage to Hong Kong of a conveyance
which carried unauthorised entrants (協助載有未獲授權
J 進境者的運輸工具前來香港的旅程) J
K
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Reasons for Sentence
L L
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M M
1. Defendant, you pleaded guilty to a single offence of
N assisting the passage to Hong Kong of a conveyance which carried N
unauthorised entrants, contrary to Section 37D(1)(a) of the
O O
Immigration Ordinance, Cap.115.
P P
2. You admitted the brief facts and I convicted you.
Q Briefly the facts were as follows. Q
R 3. On 9 March of this year at about 3.05 am a suspicious R
vessel was noted on a radar screen about 1.7 nautical miles west
S S
of Sha Kiu Tsuen outside the waters of Hong Kong SAR. It was
moving east at about 3 to 5 knots per hour.
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A 4. At around 3.15 am it was noted to be entering Hong A
Kong waters and heading for Sha Kiu Tsuen. Two police boats were
B ordered to intercept. B
C C
5. At around 3.25 am it was about 0.7 nautical miles west
of Sha Kiu Tsuen. As the police boats approached it, it turned
D D
west towards the Mainland. The police boats demanded it stop by
E switching on the blue flashing lights and issuing a warning. E
F 6. However, the boat did not comply. In the course of the F
pursuit you lost your balance and fell into the sea. The vessel
G G
was eventually stopped and you were rescued. On board the vessel
were one Vietnamese male and three female Mainlanders. Including
H H
you, none held valid travel documents for entering Hong Kong.
I I
7. You were arrested and cautioned, as were the others,
J but they are not of any concern to this court. You admitted you J
would earn RMB400 per person for conveying the persons from
K Shekou to Hong Kong. You repeated this admission in formal K
interview under caution. Also, that you were the coxswain and
L L
you had never coxed this vessel before. You had been taught
briefly by one Ar Lung prior to leaving.
M M
N 8. The vessel was in a poor condition, having no fire- N
fighting equipment, no lifesaving appliances and no navigation
O light. Also, the maximum number of persons exceeded it in that O
it was restricted to four and there were five persons aboard. In
P P
the opinion of the inspector, the vessel was not properly
equipped for navigation on the high seas.
Q Q
R 9. You are a man of clear record. Mr Lok entered R
mitigation on your behalf and I am obliged for the impressions
S that he provided. On a personal level he told me that you are 38 S
years of age, single and employed as a decoration worker in the
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Mainland. You were educated to P3 and have elderly parents on
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CRT31/18.5.2010/ML 2 DCCC389/2010/Sentence
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A the Mainland who are unable to work and rely upon you for their A
living. He stressed your clear record and plea of guilty.
B B
10. Also, Mr Lok referred to the case of HKSAR v Wong Chi
C C
Kin, CACC410/2004, and HKSAR v Yeung Wui and Others,
CACC415/2004. The thrust of those cases is to emphasise that the
D D
proper starting point for such an offence in the absence of
E aggravating features is one of 5 years. E
F 11. In the present case I entirely concur. Whilst the boat F
itself was far from perfect there are no aggravating features in
G G
my opinion. The overloading was slight. You have a clear record
and you have pleaded guilty.
H H
I
12. I therefore take as a starting point of 5 years’ I
imprisonment, and to reflect your plea of guilty, that will be
J reduced to 40 months, one-third discount. J
K K
L L
M M
N Tallentire N
District Judge
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P P
Q Q
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