TNAG-0682-FCO40-831-Political-aspects-of-administration-of-justice-in-Hong-Kong-1977 — Page 92

It would be naive to imagine that the collectors thought that the power to refrain from police action, over a period of years And in respect of numerous offenders, resided solely in the sttion. sergeant for the time being. In other words they must have been well aware that rot rll of the very considerable sums they were collecting stuck to the honey of the sergent and that the failure to initiate rosecutions ache consent of the sergeant's superiors. Thus th collectors, the surgeants and the two appellants were all members of the sanc conspiracy cach with a conscious understanding of a common design that the police officers concerned should act contrary to their public duty in regard to the administration of the law.

Moreover there is no morit in the contention that the Larn.d trial judge found proved a conspiracy different from that which was charged. The basis of this

The basis of this ssertion was the judge's finding that sono

of the conspir-tors were the

oners or operators of vice establishments.

In the first place the ch rge, even as amended, contained a reference to "other persons unmown" so that the inclusion by the judge of omers, or operators of vice stablishm.nts cannot be said not to have been contemplated by the charge.. Indeed these vere, the very persons whom it was correct to describe to unknown. Secondly, it cannot be argued that if A and E w chinged and proved to have conspired, they are not

vidence reveals that they also conspired with C. The basis of the conspiracy alloyed wes that the tub appellants woul receive money from three station cergeants in return for affording protection to "stellholders". That was a single conspiracy and it vas

amply proved. In this connection the learned judge said:

guilty because the

It has been submitted on behalf of the two Defendants that even if all the evidence adduced by the Crown were sccented as being truc, nevertheless the two Defondants ought to be acquitted because the Crown has proved, from the evidence adduced, not only one conspiracy as charged in this indictment but three or more conspiracics because it is submitted Lach of the three Station Sergeants carried on their own seperate enterprises, and that cach of them, when ver they took up the pont of Detective Station Sergeant in Bay View Division, each conspired soperetuly with the two Delon ents. I would agree with this submission if the Detective Station Sergeants nam、d did not