}
2
4.
The prisoner admitted his increasing fondness of gambling. in the past two years when he did not have much work to do. Not. uncommonly, he played in mahjong schools or visited the gambling, establishments in Macau, though he claimed he had not been too indulgent in itę He became more undiscriminative in making friends and kept company with some characters who were believed to have triad background though the prisoner denied himself to have any triad affiliation. He joined them to tea or cink at the night clubs and came to know the two accomplices for a few months prior to the offence incident.
5.
The prisoner was employed as a salesman, earning $1,250 a month in ACME Company between February 1979 to end of April 1979, and it was through business transaction that he came to know the general situation of the deceased, a Syrian merchant. The prisoner disappeared himself from ACME Company at the end of April 79 after he dishonestly deceived the company for an amount of around $10,000, allegedly because he was in need of money for a trip to visit his very sick father in Taivan. Following the prisoner's return to Hong Kong in middle June 79 after the death of his father in late May 79, he began to plan for future migration to Taiwan.
The prisoner claimed that out of a sudden wrong thinking for monetary gain, he had come up with the idea of robbing the Syrian merchant when he and the two other accompliances were having tou and complaining their penniless situation. The robbery took place on 27.6.79 in Hong Kong Hotel and it unfortunately resulted in the death of the deceased.
6.
After they each got a preliminary share of $100, the prisoner went to gamble in Macau and lost the rest of the stolen money (US$'.00). He left Hong Kong for Taiwan alone in July 79 and was arrested when he returned in September 79. After his imprisonment, the prisoner's wife and the two daughters took temporary accommodation at the mother-in-law's place in Oi Man Estate and she worked as a part-time clerk. The family's welfare needs were taken care of by the Social Welfare Department. They had been assisted with Public Assistance of $439 a month since July 80 and their housing problem was receivirg attention.