8 Sept 2004
The magistrate's acceptation of PW1 and PW2 as honest and credible was within her province after a full hearing; PW2's explanation for the omitted preamble paragraph was plausible and the admission and surrounding circumstances supplied sufficient evidence beyond reasonable doubt to uphold the conviction for attempting to export unmanifested cargo under Cap.60 s.18(1)(b).
18 Jan 2002
The appeal was dismissed because the Magistrate's low fine of HK$25,000 was a fair exercise of discretion given the facts and mitigation; the additional prospective appointment and listing matters were irrelevant and would not justify interference; absent manifest excess or error in principle the court will not alter sentence.
14 Dec 2001
The appeal was allowed and conviction quashed because the learned magistrate failed to make a specific finding that the appellant knew that the document requested was the export manifest/cargo declaration and inconsistencies in the evidence left a lingering doubt as to the safety of the conviction.
2 May 1996
The appeal is allowed because the applicant's culpability was not greater than that of co-accused whose sentence had been reduced; applying the parity principle the sentence for assisting the passage of an unauthorized entrant is reduced from two years nine months to six months and ordered to run concurrently with the 12 month sentence for attempting to export unmanifested cargo, reducing the total term to one year.
20 Nov 1981
Magistrates must not take potential administrative forfeiture into account when fixing punishment for exporting unmanifested cargo; the offence's injury to external relations justifies significant weight toward custodial sentences for serious breaches, but given the six‑month statutory maximum immediate imprisonment is not automatically the norm; in this review the appropriate disposition was confirmation of fines and a three‑month imprisonment suspended for two years.