HKSAR v. DINH XUAN-HAI

DCCC184/2012

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

CRIMINAL CASE NO. 184 OF 2012

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Reasons for Sentence

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1. The defendant has pleaded guilty to a charge of theft.

2. This was a case of pickpocketing in a crowded area by the defendant with many previous similar convictions.

3. The facts admitted by the defendant state that at 6.30 pm on 16 January, the victim, a 23-year-old female student, was on Cheung Sha Wan Road in Sham Shui Po.  As one would expect at that time of the day, the area was crowded.

4. The victim had her iPhone in her right front jacket pocket and was listening to the iPhone via an earphone.  The music suddenly stopped and she looked down to find the defendant holding her iPhone and in the process of unplugging the earphone.  The defendant then ran away and the victim shouted out to the effect that she had been robbed and started to chase after the defendant. 

5. Nearby was a very public spirited member of the public, a Mr Fung, who is 33 years of age, he heard the shouts of robbery and took off in the pursuit of the defendant.

6. The defendant fell over near the exit of the MTR station and threw the iPhone at the victim.  The defendant got up and continued running.  The victim picked up her iPhone from the ground and continued chasing the defendant, as did Mr Fung. 

7. Eventually, Mr Fung was able to get hold of and subdue the defendant with the help of other passers-by, and the defendant was later arrested by a police officer.

8. The defendant said he had stolen the iPhone because he had no money.  The iPhone is worth $4,900. 

9. The defendant has 17 previous convictions, 13 for offences of theft and he was last released from prison in October 2011, some 3 months before the commission of this offence. 

10. The defendant is 51 years of age.  He has a Vietnamese nationality although I understand he was born in Thailand.  He was educated in Vietnam to Form 3 secondary education level.  He came to Hong Kong in 1988 as a boat person.  He married another Vietnamese lady who had come to Hong Kong as a boat person and there are two children of that marriage, a daughter 15 and a son 14.  The defendant is now divorced and has no contact with his former wife or children.

11. I am told that the defendant has been unemployed for quite a long time and relies on money sent to him from relatives, usually his younger sister who lives in Australia. 

12. In mitigation I was told that the defendant had entered an early plea and fully co-operated with the police.  No weapon was used and the stolen property was recovered.  It was also urged upon the court that this was a crime of need rather than greed that the defendant was in need of money. 

13. The offence was committed in a crowded public area.  The victim was a 23-year-old female student.  The item stolen was an iPhone which is quite common in cases of this kind which are now coming before the court.  This iPhone was valued at $4,900 and, as the defendant will well know, they are quite easy to resell.  

14. The defendant has an appalling record.  I take as a starting point a sentence of 15 months’ imprisonment and I enhance that by 9 months to reflect the record of the defendant and 3 months to reflect the fact that the offence was committed in a crowded place.  The defendant is entitled to credit for his guilty plea and the sentence will therefore be reduced to a sentence of 18 months’ imprisonment. 

15. Mr Fung Chik-hei who is PW2 in these proceedings is to be commended for his very public spirited actions in connection with this matter.