A Hongkonger who attempted to escape to Taiwan has pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice and two explosives charges, with her lawyer saying she felt remorse for her actions.
Quinn Moon, 37, appeared at District Court on Thursday morning. Wearing a brown jacket and a face mask and with her hair tied back, she formally submitted her pleas as the prosecution read out the details of her charges across two cases.
The defendant pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice over the failed Taiwan escape attempt in the first case, in which she admitted serving as a liaison in touch with organisers of the speedboat escape as well as other fugitives.
Moon also pleaded guilty to possession of explosives and making explosives relating to the anti-extradition protests in 2019 in the second case.
The court heard that police searched her Mong Kok home on January 14, 2020, and found a homemade pipe bomb that was brought back by her boyfriend. Separately, Moon had also experimented with filling a tennis ball with matchheads in an attempt to make an explosive.
A third charge of possessing a dangerous drug – cannabis – in the second case was kept on court file, meaning that the prosecution will not be able to pursue the charge without a judge’s permission.
Moon was among a group of 12 Hongkongers caught by the mainland Chinese coastguard in August 2020, when they tried to flee the city on a speedboat bound for Taiwan. Most on board were facing charges linked to the protests in 2019, including rioting and arson.
At the time, Moon was wanted in relation to an explosives case.
She has already served a two-year jail term in mainland China for organising an illegal border crossing, and was arrested upon her return to Hong Kong in August 2022. She was denied bail and has been detained since.
Moon’s family members were in the public gallery as she pleaded guilty before Judge Stanley Chan, one of the judges handpicked by authorities to hear national security cases.
Defence’s mitigation
Representing Moon, barrister Yanky Lam said her client had already spent 41 months in detention, including two years in the mainland Chinese jail and her time in custody since coming back to Hong Kong.
Moon was swayed by society’s atmosphere in 2019 and her own emotions were unstable, Lam said, adding that she did not have a good relationship with her family.
Her representative also said she felt remorse for her actions and was cooperative throughout the police investigation. Moon has not given up on herself even while detained, taking courses with the hope of contributing to society after she serves time, Lam said.
Judge Chan, however, said that the severity of Moon’s case “far exceeded that of other perverting justice cases” as it involved a major incident in society and an offence that took place across borders.
Moon will be sentenced on January 30.
Of the 12 Hongkongers who attempted the Taiwan escape, Moon was handed the second-longest sentence in mainland China, returning only to Hong Kong in August 2022. Tang Kai-yin was jailed for the longest, at three years, and was handed back to the city’s authorities last August.
Tang is set to submit his plea later this month. Among the 10 other fugitives, Wong Lam-fuk – a minor – was sentenced to a training centre after pleading guilty to perverting justice and protest-related charges. Wong Wai-yin pleaded guilty to manufacturing explosives linked to the 2019 protests and his perverting justice charge was kept on court file, meaning the prosecution cannot proceed with the charge without the judge’s permission.
Meanwhile, activist Andy Li was not charged with perverting the course of justice. He is in custody awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty in a national security case, in which Apple Daily founder Jimmy Lai is also charged.
The remaining seven were jailed for ten months.
Corrections:
30/1/2024 at 6.30 pm: An earlier version of this article stated that eight of the 12 Hongkongers who attempted to flee to Taiwan had pleaded guilty to perverting justice and been jailed. It should have read seven, not eight.
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