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DCCC1310/2011
IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE
HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION
CRIMINAL CASE NO. 1310 OF 2011
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HKSAR |
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v. |
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Siu Kam-ming |
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| Date: |
13 January 2012 at 3.17 pm |
| Present: |
Mr Alex Wong, PP of the Department of Justice, for HKSAR
Ms Cheng Sin-yu, of Henry H C Wong & Co., assigned by the Director of Legal Aid, for the Defendant |
| Offence: |
(1) to (3) Burglary (入屋犯法罪) |
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Reasons for Sentence
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1. Defendant, you have pleaded guilty to three charges of burglary, contrary to section 11(1)(b) and (4) of the Theft Ordinance.
2. The three offences all took place within quite a short timeframe of each other, Charge 1 being committed on a date in September 2011 and Charges 2 and 3 on 10 and 17 October respectively. All three offences involved the same victimised premises, that is Shop No.D2 at the basement of the Pioneer Centre in Nathan Road, Mongkok.
3. The brief facts which you have agreed establish that at around 7.30 am on 17 October, a security officer of the Pioneer Centre saw you taking items from the shelves of the shop and putting them into a plastic bag. You were intercepted and the police alerted. You were arrested by the police and under caution admitted that you had just burgled the premises and also admitted that you had burgled the same premises on two previous occasions resulting in Charges 1 and 2. Altogether the total value of the property stolen from the premises amounted to some $3,190.
4. You are 29 years of age, married and live with your parents. Prior to your arrest, I am told that you worked as a decoration worker earning some $8,000 per month. You have a very poor criminal record which consists of 15 prior convictions for theft and one prior conviction for burglary.
5. Very little has been put before me by way of mitigation. There does not appear to be any financial motive for these offences. More, I am told, you were simply attracted to the items on display. You therefore broke into the premises and stole them. According to you, you stored the stolen items near your home, but they now have apparently all gone missing.
6. In sentencing you I take into account all that has been said on your behalf. I particularly take account of your plea of guilty which will be reflected in my sentence.
7. The normal starting point for burglaries of non-domestic premises is one of 2½ years’ imprisonment. I do indeed adopt that as my starting point in relation to each of these charges, but will reduce that starting point on each charge to a term of 20 months’ imprisonment to reflect your plea of guilty.
8. Due to the question of totality of sentence, I order 6 months of the 20 months on Charges 2 and 3 to run consecutively to the term of 20 months on Charge 1 and consecutively with each other, coming to an overall sentence of 32 months’ imprisonment in all.
9. I order you to pay compensation to the victimised company in the sum of $3,190, such sum to be paid through the court.
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H H Judge Geiser |
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District Judge |
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