Activists admit trespassing at PLA barracks
Fourth accused denies charge and loses bail money for showing up late for second time
Three of the four activists accused of trespassing at the People's Liberation Army barracks in Admiralty on Boxing Day last year pleaded guilty yesterday to entering a closed area without a permit.
Only one defendant, Billy Chiu Hin-chung, 29, pleaded not guilty yesterday, the first day of the scheduled four-day trial at Eastern Court.
Magistrate So Wai-tak postponed sentencing of Dickson Cheung Hon-yin, 40, and Tse Wing-man, 29, to the end of the trial while the case of a 15-year-old - who cannot be named because he is under 16 - is to be transferred to the Juvenile Court. All three are scheduled to return to court on Thursday.
All the defendants originally pleaded not guilty in February on the grounds that they did not know they had entered the barracks because there was no clear sign indicating the boundary, and that even if they had stepped within its boundary, they had the right to do so.
Chiu, whose late arrival at a hearing on Monday last week cost him his HK$500 bail money, showed up late again in court yesterday at 10.30am, an hour after the trial was due to start.
His defence lawyer had been unable to reach him and Chiu's phone service was said to have been cut off.
Explaining his lateness to the judge, unemployed Chiu said he had overslept and his phone service was terminated because he had no money to pay the bill.