Mainland businessman gets 15 months for sex assault

Adelyn Lau

A businessman was yesterday sentenced to 15 months in prison for indecent assault of a woman he met at the airport and forced her to have oral sex in a hotel room a few days later.

Wei Deen, a 54-year-old married mainlander, was given the term by deputy high court judge Vinci Lam Wing-sai in sentencing following his five-to-two conviction on January 11 by a seven-strong jury of six women and one man.

However, they unanimously acquitted him of attempted rape.

The court was told that Wei had pressed his genitals against the face of the 35-year-old victim, who is also from the mainland, after meeting her at the airport in August 2022.

A few days after they had met, Wei and the woman had lunch together at Hilton Garden Inn Hong Kong in Mong Kok.

When she found the battery level on her phone was running low, Wei said she could come to his room and charge the phone.

Wei pressed his genitals against her face in the room and kissed her without her consent.

The woman, who was having her period, asked Wei to stop but he said: "How boring. You've been in the US for so long, isn't this normal?"

In handing down the sentence, Lam said Wei's forcible oral sex on the victim was "highly insulting and demeaning."

Wei's remarks blaming the victim afterward were "offensive, disgusting and infuriating."

Lam referred to a trauma report that said the victim's self-esteem had been damaged by the incident, although she had not retained any painful memories and that her emotional distress had gradually subsided.

Lam also noted that Wei took advantage of their shared Chinese identity and portrayed himself as kind, exploiting the victim's trust and causing her harm.

Wei was completely naked during the incident, using his legs to restrain the naked victim on the bed with his legs, Lam said, escalating the seriousness of the offense.

Wei pressed his genitals extremely closely to her face, causing her extreme disgust and to express revulsion when giving testimony.

Lam also said the victim had trusted Wei, hoping he would assist in her business development, which also aggravated the circumstances of the case.