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Brian Wong

A Hong Kong court has found a 24-year-old man not guilty of committing a spate of sexual offences against his younger sister a decade ago, ruling that prosecutors failed to prove the defendant knew what he did as a teenager was seriously wrong.
A High Court jury of five men and two women acquitted the defendant on Thursday of four counts of incest and three of indecent conduct towards a child under 16.
The verdict came at the direction of the presiding judge, who concluded that the charges could not be legally established.
The man, identified in court only by his initials LHCN, was accused of committing grossly obscene acts against his younger sibling at the family’s home in Sha Tau Kok between September 2013 and July 2016.
He was 11 to 14 years old at the time of the alleged offences, while his sister, now 20, was between seven and 10.
Following his arrest in 2021, the defendant admitted engaging in sexual acts with his sister and expressed deep regret.
In a police interview, he insisted that he did not rape his sister, while claiming his elder brother had also committed obscene acts against her.
According to the defendant, the girl resorted to self-harm and attempted suicide after failing to cope with the blame and guilt of engaging in sexual acts with her blood relatives. She eventually disclosed the incidents to a social worker who later informed her parents.
The Juvenile Offenders Ordinance stipulates that no child under the age of 10 can be held liable for a crime.
Common law also presumes that a child aged between 10 and 13 is incapable of breaking the law, unless the prosecution can prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the child knew their act was so seriously wrong that it went beyond mere naughtiness or childish mischief.
Prosecutors argued the 24-year-old man showed “a clear degree of maturity beyond a child of similar age” based on the language he used towards his sister.
But Madam Justice Susana D’Almada Remedios said the prosecution failed to show why the common law presumption of a child’s criminal responsibility should not be applied in the present case.
She said that while the prosecution attempted to show the defendant’s knowledge of sex by calling two teachers from his schools to testify, neither witness could show that he understood the gravity of his actions.
Remedios also noted that the accused had only admitted engaging in sexual acts with his sister during the police interview.
“Proof of the act itself that comprises the offence is not evidence to prove that the defendant knew what he did was wrong, or seriously wrong; therefore knowledge that the act was wrong or seriously wrong cannot be presumed from the mere commission of the act,” the judge explained.
The siblings’ 48-year-old father, identified only as LWD, is scheduled to be sentenced on Wednesday after pleading guilty to perverting the course of justice by asking his daughter to drop her allegations against her two elder brothers.


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News

Hong Kong

Law and Crime

Man was 11 to 14 years old at the time of alleged offences, while his sister, now 20, was between seven and 10


Man was 11 to 14 years old at the time of alleged offences, while his sister, now 20, was between seven and 10.


Crime in Hong Kong

Sexual harassment and assault

China

Court acquits brother of incest, citing failure to prove teen knew it was wrong

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Man was 11 to 14 years old at the time of alleged offences, while his sister, now 20, was between seven and 10

Man was 11 to 14 years old at the time of alleged offences, while his sister, now 20, was between seven and 10