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273. Having considered the materials contained in his mitigation bundle and his long-term public service, we grant him 3-month deduction.
274. Apart from the above, we are unable to identify any mitigating factors which may reduce D35’s sentence. We are fully aware of D35’s mother declining health and her subsequent demise. We note that Mr Choy did not put forward “ignorance of the law” as mitigation. In any event, we are satisfied that no deduction should be given to D35 on this. Therefore, D35 is sentenced to 5 years and 1 month’s (61 months) imprisonment.
275. Similar to the case of D30, we are prepared to accept that the chance of D35 re-offending is low and we trust that the authorities would take this into account when considering remission.
D36 Chan Chi-chuen Raymond
276. D36 is now aged 52, a former LegCo Councillor for New Territories East.
277. It was accepted that D36 should be considered to be placed in the active participant category. However it was submitted that he was in the low or medium spectrum for he did not attend any press conference and coordination meeting personally. He seldom spoke in the election forum for New Territories East. He also did not draft or initiate the IWR Declaration. Nor did he attend the press conference held by the localist resistance camp on 15 July 2020.
278. Mitigation letters from family members, friends and former government officials had been produced to this Court. They spoke highly