HKSAR v. WANG YUANHONG

DCCC 760/2013

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

CRIMINAL CASE NO 760 OF 2013

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Reasons for Sentence

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1.  The defendant in this case has pleaded guilty to a charge of stealing 0.55 kilograms of wood chip of the barks of the Aquilaria Sinensis, commonly known as the incense tree.

2.  At lunchtime on 30 May 2013, officers were on duty in uniform in Keng Pang Fa Road in Sai Kung when they spotted the defendant walking out of the woods carrying a rucksack and acting suspiciously.  He was stopped and searched, and inside the rucksack that he was carrying they found pieces of wood chips, and it was later confirmed that these chips were from the incense tree.

3.  The street value of the wood chip is $15,400.

4.  Also in the bag were found a machete, a saw and a whetstone.

5.  He admitted at the scene having chopped the trees to obtain the wood, and that he intended to sell them when he returned to China.  He was later interviewed back at the police station and denied the offence. 

6.  Travel index records show that he arrived in Hong Kong on 29 May with a two-way permit.

7.  Experts from the Agricultural, Fisheries and Conservation Department confirm that the unreasonable felling of this species of tree has caused irreplaceable damage to the general natural feature and ecology of the natural forests of Hong Kong.

8.  The prosecution lodged a notice of intention to request an enhancement of sentence pursuant to section 27(2) of the Organised and Serious Crimes Ordinance, Cap 455, and in support of that application, the witness statement of a Pang Kuen-shum, a conservation officer with the Agricultural, Fisheries and Conservation Department.  This statement was served on the defence and is accepted by them.

9.  In that statement Mr Pang states that exploitation of this tree was uncommon in Hong Kong for the last few decades. He says that there has been an increasing trend, reflected by numerous recent reports, that the species has been illegally exploited, and in recent cases smaller but mature trees were also subjected to illegal harvesting.  He states that the threats owing to illegal exploitation and unsustainable uses have surged, threatening the survival of such trees in the natural environment.

10.  The defendant is 24 years of age and has a clear record.  He was born in China and educated to primary level.  At the time of the offence he was unemployed, and he had worked previously as a farmer, earning some 400 Renminbi per month.  He lives with his parents, and he has a wife and 3-year-old son.  Apparently in May this year his wife was unexpectedly found to be three to four months pregnant.  I am told that because of his meagre income as a farmer, he was desperate to look for some financial support when he discovered that his wife was having another child, and he had heard about fellow villagers coming to Hong Kong to remove the barks from incense trees and obtaining substantial rewards for only a small amount of wood, and he entered Hong Kong for that purpose.

11.  As regards his denials to the police when he was interviewed at the police station, he says that he was misled by other prisoners.  He had heard a somewhat unusual rumour that he would be beaten if he confessed, and that was the reason he denied the offence when he was interviewed on the video record.

12.  The defence have produced a copy of an authority, HKSAR v Wen Zhilang [2006] 4 HKLRD 460.  That case underlines that offences of this kind are serious and deterrent sentences are called for.

13.  I propose to take a starting point of 3 years’ imprisonment, and reduce the sentence to 2 years to reflect the defendant’s guilty plea.

14.  I accept the prosecution’s contention that this is a prevalent offence, and that the sentence should be enhanced under the provisions of section 27(2) of the Organised and Serious Crimes Ordinance.

15.  I propose to enhance the sentence by 25 per cent, which will mean that the defendant will go to prison for 2 years and 6 months.