R. v. NG CHOI YAN

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL

1995, No. 166
(Criminal)

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J U D G M E N T

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Power, Ag. CJ. (giving the judgment of the Court):

1. The applicant faced three counts of being member of the crew of a ship which entered Hong Kong with unauthorised entrants. He pleaded not guilty and was sentenced after trial to a total term of five years. He now applies for leave to appeal against both conviction and sentence.

2. The facts were all too familiar ones. He was apprehended together with others on a boat which was carrying an illegal immigrant. He was convicted on the basis of his admissions of that offence and was convicted upon the basis of the evidence and of his admission on that offence and on the basis of his admissions he was convicted of the other two offences. He himself at trial said that he was not guilty as he was an unlawful entrant himself. He has repeated that today and again today said that as to the other alleged illegal immigrants he knows nothing about it.

3. The confessions were clear ones. The trial judge was entitled to accept them as he did and the application for leave to appeal against conviction must be refused.

4. He complains as regards sentence that his accomplice got only 3½ years and he himself got an overall sentence of five years. This is correct as the accomplice faced only one charge to which he pleaded guilty. There can be no proper comparison made between he and the accomplice. The sentence followed the guidelines and indeed were well within them. The application for leave to appeal against sentence must also be refused.