Statistician cleared in school loitering case
Bastillepost · 3 SOURCESabout 1 hour ago2 MIN
Summary
A 59-year-old government statistician, Lam Wing-hong, was acquitted at Eastern Court after denying a charge of loitering causing concern to others over an incident at a Causeway Bay school on July 5, 2025. Magistrate Lam Tsz-hong ruled that the defendant's conduct inside the school corridor amounted to loitering, but the legal test also required proof that it would objectively cause reasonable fear for personal safety or interests. The court found that the 16-year-old complainant, identified as X, was subjectively frightened, yet an objective bystander at the scene would not necessarily have shared that fear. The magistrate added that the loitering offence was ill-suited to deal with this kind of alleged stalking behaviour and referred to the Law Reform Commission's recommendation for anti-stalking legislation.
Key Points
- Lam Wing-hong, 59, who said he worked as a statistician at the Census and Statistics Department, faced one count linked to a public place inside a Causeway Bay school.
- The charge alleged that on July 5, 2025, he loitered alone there and caused X reasonably to fear for her own safety or interests.
- X testified she first noticed the defendant around October 2022 during her school commute, and said repeated encounters at MTR stations continued for two to three years.
- On the school open day, teachers noticed a man lingering in the corridor; X then realised he was the same man she had often seen before.
- Police found 46 photos on the defendant's phone, and X identified herself in 17 of them, though she said she had been unaware at the time.
Why It Matters
The ruling underscores a gap between conduct that appears suspicious and the narrower legal elements needed to secure a conviction under Hong Kong's loitering law. For schools, students and parents, the case also revives debate over whether a dedicated anti-stalking law is needed to address repeated following or photographing that may not fit existing offences.