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Note:The defendants, husband and wife, created two schemes to defraud banks by presenting false sale and purchase agreements disclosing the sale of shops purchased by Taiwell Investment Limited, a company owned by the defendants, to Lloyds Group Limited and Long Mass International Limited, other companies owned by the defendants. Upon presentation of the sale agreements, the Sin Wah Bank and the National Commercial Bank issued a total of 8 LCs totaling HK$6.2 million and mortgage loans in the amounts of HK$6.6 and HK$6.3 million. The Beneficiary drew on the LCs although there was no underlying transaction, and channeled the funds back to Taiwell and ultimately to the defendants. The defendants were charged with using false instruments to prejudice the banks and were convicted and sentenced to 4 years imprisonment.

The defendants filed for leave of appeal against sentence contending the sentence should be mitigated based on the fact that they have three young children and ailing parents. The court stated it would mitigate the sentence only upon a showing of "clearly exceptional circumstances." The court had found the existence of exceptional circumstance in cases such as sick children of an imprisoned women staying with separate non-blood-related families; an inmate's son contracting the same disease that recently killed his mother; and the hospitalization of the youngest of four children of a female inmate due to a lack of supervision by oldest child who was only a teenager.

In the present case, the children were together, cared for by the family, and doing well in school. The appellate court denied the appeal, finding no exceptional circumstance and further noted that the sentences imposed were too lenient in light of the complexity of the scheme and the money involved.

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