Rape charges ‘reluctantly’ dropped against 4 Hong Kong prison officers
- Prosecutor tells court alleged victim will not testify, leaving ‘no other prospect of conviction’
Prosecutors have dropped charges against four Hong Kong prison officers allegedly involved in the gang rape of a woman last year because the complainant is unwilling to testify against them.
The four Correctional Services Department officers appeared at Eastern Court on Monday, as prosecutors applied to withdraw the charges just as the case was about to be moved to a higher court for trial.
“The complainant will not testify. There is no other prospect of conviction,” public prosecutor Raymond Chan said. “The prosecution reluctantly withdraws all four charges against the defendants.”
Magistrate Byron Tsang Chung-yiu granted the prosecution’s request without making further inquiries.
The alleged incident took place in the early hours of July 9 last year.
A 31-year-old woman lodged a police report saying she had been raped in a party room inside Mirador Mansion in Tsim Sha Tsui.