A SELF-PROCLAIMED altruist convicted of blackmailing two company directors with the threat of exposing their alleged corruption to the ICAC escaped a jail term yesterday.
Sunny Tang Wai-hung, 40, who struggled to remain composed in the dock while his counsel Eric Kwok pleaded in mitigation on his behalf, shed tears when he heard his sentence would be suspended.
Tang, a former conveyancing clerk with a firm of solicitors, was found guilty on two counts of blackmail, which he had denied.
Although Tang claimed he was working undercover to extract evidence to substantiate his complaint to the Independent Commission Against Corruption, Deputy Judge Muttrie found the idea of Tang acting as an altruistic crusader extremely farfetched.
Tang had used a defence similar to that employed by former lawyer Augustine Chung Shai-kit almost 19 years ago. Mr Chung, who claimed he was only conducting a psychological experiment at the time, was acquitted of a blackmail charge in 1975.
Tang was sentenced to two years' imprisonment, suspended for two years, for each of the two charges. The sentence is to run concurrently.
Deputy Judge Muttrie described the case as unusual. The threat was exposure of a course of action - an alleged conspiracy to defraud the Government.