CHIU PING-KEI v. THE QUEEN
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CACC000444/1978
| IN THE COURT OF APPEAL | |
| 1978 No. 444 | |
| (Criminal) |
| BETWEEN | ||
| CHIU Ping-kei | Appellant | |
| and | ||
| THE QUEEN | Respondent |
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Coram: Briggs, C.J., Huggins and Pickering, JJ.A.
Date of Judgment: 22nd June 1978.
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JUDGMENT
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Huggins, J.A.:
1. The Appellant seeks leave to appeal against his sentences totalling seven years' imprisonment on two charges of robbery and one of unlawful wounding, to which he pleaded Guilty. There were two incidents. Both of them were robberies in a lift. On the first occasion the man who was attacked resisted: it would seem that he tried to grasp the knife which the Appellant was holding and his hand was cut. For these two offences the learned judge passed sentences of four years' imprisonment and one years' imprisonment concurrent. On the second occasion the Appellant was in a lift with a woman and her nine-year-old daughter. It was not suggested that he produced a knife but he did stop the lift between two floors and proceed to take their property. A sentence of three years' imprisonment consecutive was passed. These were serious offences, but we think that an overall sentence of seven years' imprisonment was too long. We shall allow the appeal and substitute sentences of five years' imprisonment concurrent on both robbery charges.
2. There was another matter dealt with by the learned judge. In July of last year the Appellant was given a nine months' sentence suspended for eighteen months for possession of dangerous drugs for the purpose of unlawful trafficking. The learned judge activated that sentence but ordered that it run concurrently with the other sentences he was then passing. We think it is unfortunate that when a sentence is activated it should not appear that an effective sentence is being passed for the original offence. We shall order that the sentence of nine months' imprisonment be activated as a sentence of six months' imprisonment consecutive to the two sentences of five years. The practical result is therefore that the sentence is reduced by a term of eighteen months.
22nd June 1978.
Representation: