Sex with girl, 12, admitted

A 20-year-old computer salesman had sex with a 12-year-old schoolgirl the day they met after contacting each other on the Internet, a court heard yesterday.

Chiu Shung-hei, 20, pleaded guilty in the District Court to two counts of unlawful sexual intercourse with a girl under 13.

Barrister William Allan, for Chiu, told the court the accused was 'genuinely remorseful' and loved the girl, whom he met through ICQ, an online chat system.

Mr Allan said the girl lied about her age, telling Chiu she was 16 and studying Form Five. It was the girl, a Primary Five pupil, who 'instigated' the sex, he said.

'He tried to dissuade her from having sex with him because he did not want their relationship to develop too quickly,' Mr Allan said. 'The defendant and the victim love each other.'

Prosecutor Winston Chan said the pair became acquainted while chatting through ICQ on April 10 last year. She gave him her home telephone number and received a call from Chiu that night asking her out.