A barrister accused of blackmailing property tycoon Nina Wang Kung Yu-sum was mentally ill, but his condition did not prevent him from discerning between right and wrong, a court heard yesterday.
Psychiatrist Henry Yuen Cheung-hang told the District Court that Thomson Mo Sze-lung, 36, had developed cyclothymic disorder - a mild mood-swing condition - in his late teens and the illness progressed to a more serious form called bipolar II disorder. But Dr Yuen said Mo was definitely capable of forming the requisite criminal intent for the alleged offence.
Mo denies attempting to defraud Ms Wang, the chairwoman of Chinachem Group, during a series of phone calls between June 12 and 15 last year.
His evidence contrasts with that of Dr Wong Chung-kwong, an attending psychiatrist for Mo, who said on Wednesday that Mo was incapable of forming the requisite criminal intent at that time.
Dr Wong told the court Mo's power of proper judgment and control over his impulses was 'grossly impaired' by his state of mind, which was then under the influence of hypomanic episodes.
'Only two kinds of people would be incapable of forming the intent: the mentally retarded and those influenced and intoxicated by drugs,' Dr Yuen said.
