HONG KONG: Four young men, all in their late teens, pleaded guilty yesterday in District Court to charges arising from a case in which a 14-year-old girl was lured by a friend into an ordeal in which she had sexual intercourse with seven men.

Three of the men and one girl, 15-year-old Cheng Shuk-ling, who is accused of setting up the lure pleaded not guilty.

The victim, identified only as X by the prosecutor, had just turned 14 when the assault took place. The defendants were accused of indecent assault and unlawful sexual intercourse with a child under 16. All of the accused were under 18 when the crime took place. The youngest was a 15-year-old Form 2 student. Most of them were neither attending school nor employed at the time.

The victim reportedly had been friends with Cheng since elementary school. On March 27, 2009, the victim felt unwell and left school early. She called Cheng and suggested they meet. The victim said Cheng led her and the seven youths to a business establishment in Shau Kai Wan.

In the upper attic of the establishment, they started playing the "rock-paper-scissors" game, demanding the losers remove clothing. The victim said in her affidavit that she was the one forced to remove her clothing whether she "won" the game or not and that she felt that everyone present had invaded her privacy.

Four of the youths took turns having sexual intercourse with the victim, although the victim tried hard to resist. The victim said Cheng had remained in the room while the assaults took place but had responded with indifference to her friend's anguish.

After the seven males left, the victim said Cheng admitted to her that she was aware of what was going to happen.

The victim denied the claim the sexual abuse or intercourse was consentual. She said she was sober and clear-headed at that time, but was not sure if the accused were intoxicated by alcohol or on drugs.

However, the victim did not report the case to the police immediately. It was not until April 20, almost a month later when she told a social worker about her experience that the matter was eventually taken up by the police.

The trial of the four who pleaded innocent in the case continues today.

(HK Edition 12/29/2009 page1)