A 43-year-old man who had lived in the Hong Kong International Airport for five years pleaded guilty yesterday to charges of loitering and possession of child pornography in the Tsuen Wan Magistrate's Court.

But the magistrate postponed sentencing until the end of the month so that he could spend more time to analyze the case.

Magistrate Don So Man-lung said he needed to carefully study the case as there was no precedent for possession of child pornographic comics.

The law prohibiting the possession of child pornography was enacted five years ago.

The saga unfolded after a woman working on the fifth floor of the passenger terminal at the airport reported to police that the defendant Leo Sit Lay-man was stalking her and imitating her actions.

Police found four comics containing child pornography on Sit, who said he was attracted by the woman's temperament, and charged him for one count of loitering and one count of possession of child pornography.

It was revealed that Sit had been living in the airport since 2003, when he was fired by his employer after returning from a vacation in Japan.

Sit, who obtained a social science degree at the Open University in 2000, hung around the airport with his luggage and notebook computer, which he used for Internet access in a cafe.

He would leave the airport sometimes to have meals in Tung Chung, the court was told earlier. He slept on benches at the airport at night.

In a previous hearing, the court was told that Sit purchased the comics during his vacation in Japan when the Prevention of Child Pornography Ordinance was not enacted yet.

The prosecution said the ordinance should also apply to comics.

But Magistrate So said yesterday there was no relevant precedent, and hence he needed more time to consider the case in order to deliver an appropriate sentence.

He added that the court also needed to wait for Sit's psychological and mental reports.

The prosecution told the court that an appeal case related to the ordinance was being handled by the High Court, and a written judgment would be delivered soon.

Magistrate So said he would refer to the written judgment should it be delivered before he passes his ruling.

Sit was granted bail and refused to take reporters' questions.

(HK Edition 04/04/2008 page1)