HKSAR v. CHUNG TSZ MAN

DCCC 263/2022

[2022] HKDC 1519

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

CRIMINAL CASE NO 263 OF 2022

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REASONS FOR SENTENCE

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INTRODUCTION

1.  The defendant is convicted upon his own guilty plea on the charge of burglary, contrary to section 11(1)(b)  and (4)  of Cap 210.

FACTS

2.  At about 10 pm on 14 November 2021, the owner of the electrical appliances shop called “SKYBLUE DIGITAL” situated at Shop 1A, LG Floor, Smiling Shau Kei Wan Plaza, No.17 Nam Hong Street, Shau Kei Wan, Hong Kong (the “Shop”)  closed and left the Shop. When he returned to the Shop at about 11 am on 15 November 2021, he found the Shop’s glass door prized open and the Shop ransacked. He therefore made a report to the police.

3.  The following items of the Shop were stolen:

(a)  14 phone back panels;

(b)  158 mobile phone monitors;

(c)  50 batteries;

(d)  1 iPhone;

(e)  3 tablet computers;

(f)  3 mobile phone cases;

(g)  182 mobile phone camera protectors;

(h)  5 tablet computer monitors;

(i)  1 earphone;

(j)  1 box of pens;

(k)  2 boxes of blades;

(l)  1 remote control;

(m)  89 mobile phone screen protectors;

(n)  Some electronic components;

(o)  24 boxes; and

(p)  around 12 mobile phones.

The total value of the stolen items was about HK$94,900.

4.  The CCTV of the Shop captured the defendant ransacking the Shop at the material time.

5.  On 16 November 2021, the defendant was arrested for burglary at his residence at Yiu Tung Estate, Shau Kei Wan. Upon house search, items (a)  to (o)  mentioned in paragraph 3 above and 6 mobile phones were recovered. The owner of the Shop subsequently confirmed that those recovered items belonged to the Shop. The total value of the recovered items was about HK$84,900.

6.  Under caution, the defendant admitted having committed burglary at the Shop using a screwdriver to prize open the Shop’s door lock at the material time.

DEFENDANT’S BACKGROUND

7.  The defendant was born in July 1980 and is now 42 years old. He received education up to Form 3 level. Prior to his arrest, he used to work as a casual window installation worker with a daily wage of HK$800.

8.  The defendant has one previous conviction of trafficking in dangerous drugs sentenced in December 2013 for 26 months’ imprisonment and one previous conviction of possession of dangerous drugs sentenced in December 2020 for 4 months’ imprisonment suspended for 18 months. The present offence took place when his suspended sentence was still in force.

MITIGATION

9.  It was submitted that the stolen items were not brand new or of high value, that most of them had been recovered, that the offence was not an organized one and that only a screwdriver taken from the defendant’s home was used.

10.  Mr Yeung referred me to R v Wong Man [1993] 1 HKC 80.

SENTENCE

11.  For burglary of non-domestic premises, the usual starting point is 30 months’ imprisonment for a first offencer of full age: R v Wong Man [1993] 1 HKC 80 and Attorney General v Lui Kam Chi [1993] 1 HKC 215.

12.  For the present offence, I adopt a starting point of 30 months’ imprisonment. One-third discount is given to the defendant for his timely indication of guilty plea. There being no further valid mitigating factors justifying further reduction in sentence, the sentence for this case is 20 months’ imprisonment.

13.  The defendant committed the present offence when his suspended sentence was still in force. I therefore activate the 4 months’ imprisonment imposed in ESCC 2196/2020. As the offence in ESCC 2196/2020 and the present offence are separate and distinct, I order that the 20 months’ imprisonment in the present case to run totally consecutively with the 4 months’ imprisonment in ESCC 2196/2020.