HKSAR v. WONG MAN TSUN

 DCCC1387/2009

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE

HONG KONGSPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

CRIMINAL CASE NO. 1387 OF 2009

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Reasons for Sentence

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1.  The defendant has pleaded guilty to four counts of conspiracy to defraud for Charges 2, 3, 5 and 6.

2.  The facts as he has admitted them reveal that he and PW1 in the case, Miss Kau, had started dating in about 2004, and the defendant had a drug habit and always in need of money. In mid-2004, the defendant agreed with PW1 to contract a bogus marriage with a male from the Mainland, and that is resulting in Charge 2. Then sometime later the defendant agreed with PW1 again to contract another bogus marriage with another Mainland male, and that resulted in Charge 5.

3.  On 15 October 2008, the defendant gave a cautioned statement in which he admitted that he was in need of money to support his drug habit and he asked a person called Lung to arrange two bogus marriages for him and so he subsequently married two Mainland women - Lu in 2004 and Liu in 2007 - in Hong Kong. For the marriage to Lu, he was offered compensation of $15,000. He had been given $8,000 initially and the $7,000 remaining would be given to him once Lu settled in Hong Kong. In relation to Charge 6, the second bogus marriage, again he was offered $15,000 as compensation and again money was given to him in two tranches: the first time $7,000 and then the remaining $8,000 to be given to him when Liu settled in Hong Kong.

4.  The defendant has a poor record for someone who is only aged 33. He has 18 previous convictions, 10 of which were for dishonesty, but as Mr Chan correctly pointed out, there has been none for conspiracy.

5.  This type of offence is treated very seriously by the courts in Hong Kong. Basically, as the cases have revealed, the courts have recognised that this sort of case is on the rise because of the temptation of being able to settle in Hong Kong.

6.  From referring to a number of previous cases, for example, the case submitted by Mr Chan, HCMA342/2007, there is also HCMA507/2009, it is clear that the prevailing sentence for this type of offences is a starting point of 18 months’ imprisonment reduced to 12 months because of plea.

7.  I had considered in this case, because of the defendant’s background and the number of charges, whether I should increase the starting point. However, as I can see from the admitted facts, there does not seem to have been any force imposed on the girlfriend of PW1, for her to marry the two persons in China, so in those circumstances I am prepared to go along with the usual sentence for this type of offences.

8.  So I will sentence on each charge a starting point of 18 months’ imprisonment on each charge to be reduced to 12 months because of the defendant’s plea.

9.  Having considered the totality principle, I sentence the defendant in this way: on Charge 2, he is sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment; on Charge 3, he is sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment, 6 months of which will be consecutive to the previous sentence; on Charge 5, he will be sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment, 6 months of which will be consecutive to the previous two sentences; and on the 6th charge, he is also sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment, 6 months to be consecutive to the previous sentences, therefore making a total sentence of 30 months, which is 2 years and 6 months.