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'Unrepentant' teacher who sexually assaulted two male students jailed
A 35-year-old male teacher, who initially got a community service order for indecently assaulting two male students, was jailed on Thursday for eight months after the High Court approved the sentence review filed by the Department of Justice.
Ng Ho-nam got a 240-hour community service order at District Court on March 15 for indecently assaulting two male students, identified as X and Y in court, between March 2015 and April 2017.
Ng, an English teacher at a Kwun Tong secondary school at that time, allegedly reached his hand under X's shirt and touched the area below X's belly button. He reportedly reached his hand under Y's shirt, circling and tickling Y's nipple for over 10 minutes.
District judge Clement Lee Hing-nin back then said the nature of the case was serious, and Ng had violated honesty and trust, which called for a deterrent sentence. Yet, he noted guidance was better than punishment after factoring in recommendations from reports when handing down the community service order.
Ng on Thursday filed an appeal against his conviction to the High Court, while the Department of Justice (DOJ), believing the original sentence was too lenient, filed a sentence review at the same time.
The defense counsel for Ng said there was a "blood feud" between Ng and two other teachers, who were close to X and Y. Before X and Y reported to police, the school was discussing with Ng about his promotion, the counsel continued.
The counsel added that judge Lee didn't consider the possibility that X and Y colluded with the two teachers to frame Ng so that he would not be promoted.
On the other hand, the defense stressed that the abdomen was not a sensitive body part and touching the abdomen of a man and woman should not be viewed as indecent assault. Shocked to hear this statement, the High Court judge asked, "Are you being serious?" and said it was hard to believe Ng's acts didn't count as indecent assault.
Meanwhile, DOJ said one of the conditions for sentencing the community service order was that Ng expressed regret towards what he had done. The order was no longer a suitable option for Ng, who not only pleaded not guilty but also insisted that he was framed after the conviction, according to DOJ.
In the end, the court sentenced Ng to 10-month imprisonment for two counts of indecent assault. The jail term was reduced by two months, for he had been remanded for three weeks earlier.
Ng, an English teacher at a Kwun Tong secondary school at that time, allegedly reached his hand under X's shirt and touched the area below X's belly button. He reportedly reached his hand under Y's shirt, circling and tickling Y's nipple for over 10 minutes.
District judge Clement Lee Hing-nin back then said the nature of the case was serious, and Ng had violated honesty and trust, which called for a deterrent sentence. Yet, he noted guidance was better than punishment after factoring in recommendations from reports when handing down the community service order.
Ng on Thursday filed an appeal against his conviction to the High Court, while the Department of Justice (DOJ), believing the original sentence was too lenient, filed a sentence review at the same time.
The defense counsel for Ng said there was a "blood feud" between Ng and two other teachers, who were close to X and Y. Before X and Y reported to police, the school was discussing with Ng about his promotion, the counsel continued.
The counsel added that judge Lee didn't consider the possibility that X and Y colluded with the two teachers to frame Ng so that he would not be promoted.
On the other hand, the defense stressed that the abdomen was not a sensitive body part and touching the abdomen of a man and woman should not be viewed as indecent assault. Shocked to hear this statement, the High Court judge asked, "Are you being serious?" and said it was hard to believe Ng's acts didn't count as indecent assault.
Meanwhile, DOJ said one of the conditions for sentencing the community service order was that Ng expressed regret towards what he had done. The order was no longer a suitable option for Ng, who not only pleaded not guilty but also insisted that he was framed after the conviction, according to DOJ.
In the end, the court sentenced Ng to 10-month imprisonment for two counts of indecent assault. The jail term was reduced by two months, for he had been remanded for three weeks earlier.
