THE Tuen Mun rapist, who murdered three women during a 16-month reign of terror, was yesterday described as 'a continuing and dreadful menace to Hong Kong' as he lost an appeal against conviction.
Lam Kwok-wai, 23, now serving 11 life sentences, claimed the trial judge had biased the jury against him.
But the Court of Appeal rejected his plea in less than an hour, deciding Mr Justice Bewley's comments at last September's High Court trial were completely justified.
Lam - who was finally caught when his last rape victim invited him on a bogus date and called the police - admitted attacking lone women as they returned home late at night.
In three of the 10 attacks he choked his victims to death. But Lam denied murder, pleading guilty to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility.
A psychiatric report on Lam, who also admitted eight rapes and seven robberies between April 1992 and August 1993, said he had a condition which made it difficult for him to control his impulses and aggression.