Trio convicted of conspiring to damage railway stop

The District Court on Wednesday found three men guilty of conspiring to damage an MTR light rail stop in Tuen Mun in 2019.

Li Kwan-ho, Ivan Cheung and Ryan Li were charged with conspiracy to commit criminal damage, after police searched a car they were in on September 5, 2019 and found a dashcam which recorded their discussions about damaging light rail stop facilities.

Defence lawyers had earlier argued that the recordings merely showed them engaging in discussions, adding that no agreement had been reached.

But in delivering his verdict, Judge Frankie Yiu said the trio had already arrived at a consensus on damaging facilities of the Tuen Mun Ferry Pier light rail stop, and had even discussed escape routes and places to change clothes.

He noted that items like a hammer and a screwdriver were also found in one of the defendant’s rucksack.

The judge said a jail sentence is needed to reflect the gravity of the offence, and remanded the trio in custody until sentencing on January 27.

Meanwhile, another defendant, Chong Sze-wai, was acquitted of the same charge.

The judge said while she did advocate and discuss damaging light rail stops with the trio, the group hadn’t clearly reached an agreement before she left the vehicle.