Five convicted in underage sex case, sentencing set
HK01 · 6 SOURCES19 minutes ago5 MIN
Summary
A 6-man, 1-woman High Court jury returned verdicts on Wednesday after about six hours of deliberation, convicting five men over offences involving a 14-year-old complainant identified as X. Apart from YouTuber Wong Pak-hong (黃栢康), who was acquitted on one count of committing an indecent act with a child, the jury convicted the defendants on the remaining 12 charges, including unlawful sexual intercourse with a girl under 16 and, in firefighter Cho Kit-ting’s case, non-consensual buggery. Justice Alex Kwok Kai-on adjourned the case to October 30 for mitigation and sentencing, ordered a background report for first defendant Tam Siu-chun and a psychological impact report for X, and remanded all five in custody.
Key Points
- The defendants are Tam Siu-chun, 28, a primary school teacher; Chan Ka-ming, 33, a Lands Department officer; Ng Kai-ching, 24, an engineering intern; Cho Kit-ting, 31, a firefighter; and Wong Pak-hong, 28, a YouTuber.
- The charges covered conduct between May 3 and June 2, 2023, when X was 14, and totalled 13 counts across unlawful sex, indecent acts, assault and non-consensual buggery.
- The jury acquitted Wong on one indecent-act count by a 6-1 majority, while the remaining convictions were reached unanimously or by majority verdicts.
- HK01 reported the defendants appeared calm on hearing the verdicts, while firefighter Cho at one point tilted his head up and looked at the courtroom ceiling
- The prosecution case said X met the men through the Heymandi app; police began investigating after she reported a lost phone on June 4, 2023 and officers noticed bruising on her arm.
Why It Matters
The case now moves from trial to sentencing, with the court seeking both a background report and a psychological impact report before deciding penalties. For Hong Kong readers, the verdicts close the fact-finding stage in a case involving multiple defendants, a minor complainant and offences said to have taken place over a single month.