OVERVIEW
Under section 24 of the Crimes Ordinance (Cap. 200), a person commits an offence if they threaten another person with injury to that person's person, reputation or property, or to the person, reputation or property of a third party, intending to alarm the person threatened, cause that person to do something they are not legally bound to do, or cause that person not to do something they are legally entitled to do.
Examples may include:
- Threatening to physically assault a person or a member of their family.
- Threatening to damage a person's home, vehicle, business premises or other property.
- Threatening to publish damaging allegations or private information in order to alarm someone.
- Threatening a person to force them to sign a document, make a payment or take another step they are not legally required to take.
- Threatening a person to stop them from reporting a matter, pursuing a lawful complaint or exercising another legal right.
STATUTORY PROVISIONS
Section 24 of the Crimes Ordinance (Cap. 200)
The relevant part of the current statutory provision states:
“Any person who threatens any other person with any injury to him in person, reputation or property, or to the person, reputation or property of a third person, with intent to alarm the person so threatened or to cause him to do any act which he is not legally bound to do, or to omit to do any act which he is legally entitled to do, shall be guilty of an offence.”
ELEMENTS OF THE OFFENCE
The Communication of a Threat
The defendant must have communicated a threat to another person. The threat may be spoken, written, gestured or sent digitally. It does not matter whether the threat is made directly to the intended victim or conveyed through an intermediary.
The Content of the Threat
Under section 24(a)–(c) of the Crimes Ordinance (Cap. 200), the nature of the threat must fall within at least one of these statutory categories:
- Threatening injury to the person, reputation or property of the victim or any third party, such as a family member.
- Threatening injury to the person, reputation or property of a deceased person in whom the victim has an interest.
- Threatening to commit a criminal offence.
Mens Rea (The Mental Element)
Under section 24(i)–(iii) of the Crimes Ordinance (Cap. 200), it is not enough for the prosecution merely to show that words were spoken in anger. It must prove that the defendant had a specific intent when the threat was communicated. The threat must be accompanied by one of the following intentions:
- Intent to Alarm: The purpose of the threat was to cause alarm to the victim or another person.
- Intent to Compel Action: The threat was intended to coerce the victim or a third party to perform an act that they were not legally bound to do.
- Intent to Compel Omission: The threat was intended to cause the victim or a third party not to do something that they were legally entitled to do.
RELATED OFFENCE
Distinction between Blackmail and Criminal Intimidation
Criminal intimidation under section 24 of the Crimes Ordinance focuses on a threat made with intent to alarm a person, compel an act that the person is not legally bound to do, or compel the omission of an act that the person is legally entitled to do. It does not require proof of an unwarranted demand, a view to gain or an intent to cause financial loss.
Blackmail under section 23 of the Theft Ordinance (Cap. 210) requires an unwarranted demand with menaces made with a view to gain for oneself or another, or with intent to cause loss to another. Depending on the facts, the same communication may be investigated under either offence, but the prosecution must prove the distinct statutory ingredients of the charge selected.
Maximum Penalty
1. Conviction on Indictment: If the case involves severe threats, persistent harassment or extortionate elements, it may be dealt with in the District Court or High Court. Upon conviction on indictment, the maximum penalty is 5 years' imprisonment.
2. Summary Conviction (Magistrates' Courts): For standard or less complex offences prosecuted summarily before a Magistrate, the maximum statutory penalty is 2 years' imprisonment and a Level 4 fine (HK$25,000).
HOW MCS CAN ASSIST
Advice and representation
MCS can assess the charge, the statutory elements and the prosecution evidence; advise on interview, plea, trial and sentence; and identify any defence or evidential issue available on the facts.