Retired policeman jailed for perversion, forgery, deception and making false report to ICAC
2009-3-26
A retired Detective Senior Police Constable, charged by the ICAC, was today (Thursday) sentenced to four years in jail at the District Court for offences of perversion, forgery, deception, and making a false report to the ICAC.
Poon King-chuen, 49, was earlier found guilty of a total of eight charges –'96 one of conspiracy to pervert the course of public justice, three of perversion, one of forgery, one of using a copy of a false instrument, one of obtaining property by deception, and one of making a false report to the ICAC.
In sentencing, Deputy Judge Sham Siu-man said as a law enforcer, the defendant’s acts constituted serious malfeasance, bringing disgrace on the police and undermining the public’s confidence in the force.
The judge added that he had to mete out an immediate custodial sentence to the defendant to reflect the seriousness of the offences.
The case arose from a referral from the Police, alleging corruption against the defendant. Subsequent ICAC enquiries uncovered the above offences.
The court heard that three of the offences, which took place between May 2 and July 16, 2007, related to a police investigation of a theft case at a department store in May 2007.
The defendant, then a Detective Senior Police Constable investigating the case, conspired with a suspect in the theft case to pervert the course of public justice by procuring witness statements to be given in the name of a security guard of the departmen t store, which would result in the withdrawal of prosecution against the suspect.
The defendant informed the suspect to collect from her mail box copies of two forged witness statements purportedly made by the security guard. In one of the statements, the security guard purportedly requested to withdraw the complaint of theft against the suspect.
The statements, which were not made by the security guard, were found to be forged.
The defendant then made a false report to the ICAC, accusing the suspect of offering $4,000 to the security guard in return for the latter’s assistance in fixing up the theft case against the suspect.
The court also heard that four other offences took place between January 3 and August 29, 2007. They related to a deception case handled by the defendant in 2006.
The defendant forged three police witness statements of three complainants, who had jointly lodged a complaint with the Police against an individual accused of obtaining loans by deception. The witness statements were purportedly given by the complainant s to withdraw their complaint.
The defendant also made false representations to the complainants that the police investigation of the deception case involving the said individual was still on-going, and that there was little prospect of prosecuting the offender. He also claimed that a nother person could assist in collecting the debts and dishonestly obtained $6,000 from one of the complainants.
On two different occasions, the defendant incited, induced and instructed the complainants to make false statements to the Police and/or the ICAC in relation to the police investigation.
On November 10, 2006, the defendant also incited, induced and instructed a 14-year-old boy, who was suspected to have stolen a mobile phone, to make a false statement to the Police regarding the theft case, the court was told.
The Police had rendered full assistance to the ICAC during its investigation.
The prosecution was today represented by prosecuting counsel Newman Wong, assisted by ICAC officers Eastman Tang and James Law.
Poon King-chuen, 49, was earlier found guilty of a total of eight charges –'96 one of conspiracy to pervert the course of public justice, three of perversion, one of forgery, one of using a copy of a false instrument, one of obtaining property by deception, and one of making a false report to the ICAC.
In sentencing, Deputy Judge Sham Siu-man said as a law enforcer, the defendant’s acts constituted serious malfeasance, bringing disgrace on the police and undermining the public’s confidence in the force.
The judge added that he had to mete out an immediate custodial sentence to the defendant to reflect the seriousness of the offences.
The case arose from a referral from the Police, alleging corruption against the defendant. Subsequent ICAC enquiries uncovered the above offences.
The court heard that three of the offences, which took place between May 2 and July 16, 2007, related to a police investigation of a theft case at a department store in May 2007.
The defendant, then a Detective Senior Police Constable investigating the case, conspired with a suspect in the theft case to pervert the course of public justice by procuring witness statements to be given in the name of a security guard of the departmen t store, which would result in the withdrawal of prosecution against the suspect.
The defendant informed the suspect to collect from her mail box copies of two forged witness statements purportedly made by the security guard. In one of the statements, the security guard purportedly requested to withdraw the complaint of theft against the suspect.
The statements, which were not made by the security guard, were found to be forged.
The defendant then made a false report to the ICAC, accusing the suspect of offering $4,000 to the security guard in return for the latter’s assistance in fixing up the theft case against the suspect.
The court also heard that four other offences took place between January 3 and August 29, 2007. They related to a deception case handled by the defendant in 2006.
The defendant forged three police witness statements of three complainants, who had jointly lodged a complaint with the Police against an individual accused of obtaining loans by deception. The witness statements were purportedly given by the complainant s to withdraw their complaint.
The defendant also made false representations to the complainants that the police investigation of the deception case involving the said individual was still on-going, and that there was little prospect of prosecuting the offender. He also claimed that a nother person could assist in collecting the debts and dishonestly obtained $6,000 from one of the complainants.
On two different occasions, the defendant incited, induced and instructed the complainants to make false statements to the Police and/or the ICAC in relation to the police investigation.
On November 10, 2006, the defendant also incited, induced and instructed a 14-year-old boy, who was suspected to have stolen a mobile phone, to make a false statement to the Police regarding the theft case, the court was told.
The Police had rendered full assistance to the ICAC during its investigation.
The prosecution was today represented by prosecuting counsel Newman Wong, assisted by ICAC officers Eastman Tang and James Law.