THE QUEEN v. LI PAN MAN AND ANOTHER

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL

1995, No.199
(Criminal)

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JUDGMENT

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Litton, V-P, giving the judgment of the Court:

1. This is an application for leave to appeal against conviction by Li Pan-man who was the first defendant in the court below. He was charged with five other persons and was found guilty on two charges as follows. Charge 3: False imprisonment – having between December 1993 and 8 January 1994 unlawfully imprisoned Ma Pui-ching and detained her against her will. Charge 9: Living on the earnings of prostitution – having between December 1993 and 8 January 1994 at Mongkok lived on the earnings of prostitution of Ma Pui-ching. The applicant was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment on charge 3, nine months on charge 9 to be served consecutively. He now seeks leave to appeal against conviction.

2. The story as told to the judge has a familiar ring. Ma Pui-ching (PW7), the female concerned, was a hostess at a Karaoke club and had got into debt. She was introduced to this applicant with a view to her working as a prostitute to clear her debt. She was about 20 years old at the time. She first met the applicant at a restaurant together with a person called Ah Chung and was then taken to a flat in Fa Yuen Street in Mongkok by the two men. That was where she stayed for the month of December 1993 and the first week in January 1994, until the flat was raided by the police. She rendered sexual services to customers in villas in the Mongkok area. The person who escorted her to the villas was called Hung Chai, identified as  Cheung Tin-hung (the 3^rd accused) who collected money for her services.

3. Ma Pui-ching (PW7) estimated that in the month or so prior to 8 January 1994 she served about 10 customers a day. On one occasion she saw the money being handed by Cheng Tin-hung (D3) to the 6^th accused, Lam Kap-shing who in turn handed the money to this applicant. At the flat there were four other girls. This applicant was frequently in the flat and occasionally slept there. The 3^rd accused, one Wu Ka-ki (the 5^th accused), a Lam Kap-shing (the 6^th accused) and two other defendants slept at the flat in addition to Ma Pui-ching (PW7) and the other four girls.

4. Ma Pui-ching testified in the District Court to the effect that she was not allowed to leave the flat alone nor was she allowed to make telephone calls without supervision. In relation to charge 3 the essential issue for the trial judge was whether Ma Pui-ching had been detained in the flat against her will. The trial judge found that she was.

5. At the hearing before us the applicant submits that in the course of her cross-examination she had denied that this applicant had ever asked her to be a prostitute. This is contrary to the judge’s finding. The judge summarized the effect of her cross-examination by counsel acting for this applicant in this way:

“She denied that it was Ah Chung, not D1, who had suggested that she work as a prostitute. PW7 maintained her denial of never having left the Fa Yuen St. flat unaccompanied and maintained that fear of harm to herself or her family was the reason that she had not attempted to escape or phone for help.”

Such was the effect of the prosecution evidence against this applicant. The applicant elected to remain silent at the trial and called no evidence. That was his right but the effect was that there was nothing coming from him to contradict what PW7 had said.

6. The judge upon careful analysis of the evidence found PW7 to have been a credible witness. There was clearly sufficient evidence before the court to convict this applicant on both charges 3 and 9. In these circumstances the application for leave to appeal against conviction must be dismissed.

7. In relation to the application for leave to appeal against sentence of Lam Kap-shing (D6), the order is simply that the hearing will be adjourned to a fresh date to be fixed.