A judge yesterday asked the Director of Public Prosecutions to step in and bring an appropriate charge against a mainland fisherman caught with two suspected stolen fung shui trees.
District Court judge Chua Fi-lan said there was circumstantial evidence to suggest Lee Chiu-sang, 19, conspired to steal two Buddhist pine trees.
She rejected the explanation of senior government counsel that Lee could only be charged with assisting the passage of an illegal immigrant after he and another mainlander, Ho Ming, were intercepted at sea in September aboard a sampan loaded with the trees.
The court was told that Ho was seen by marine police dragging the trees on to the boat at Tai Long Sai Wan, but had since been repatriated without being charged.
Lee first appeared in court last week on a charge of assisting the passage within Hong Kong of an unauthorised entrant.
Dissatisfied with the charge, Judge Chua last week gave the prosecution one week to prepare an explanation.