A PhD student has admitted splashing a liquid infused with his semen onto a woman’s buttocks at a university in Hong Kong because of academic stress.
Lai Changwei, 26, on Thursday pleaded guilty at West Kowloon Court to indecent assault, an act the presiding magistrate called an “extremely insulting” attack on the 22-year-old victim at City University of Hong Kong (CityU).
The defence said Lai, married and living in neighbouring Shenzhen, was pursuing a PhD in neuroscience at CityU on a full scholarship and was expected to graduate in one to two years’ time.
The counsel said Lai was under enormous pressure when he committed the crime because an experiment he had been undertaking did not go as planned.
CCTV footage from the Kowloon Tong campus showed Lai tailing the woman immediately after spotting her inside a university building at around 3.30pm on June 6, the court heard.
He then squirted a milky liquid onto the victim using a plastic pipette.
The victim did not realise she had been attacked until after a check on her jacket and trousers inside a washroom moments later.
Lai was arrested five days later after a policewoman intercepted him outside Festival Walk, a shopping centre near the university. The suspect admitted the offence on the spot.
“I was careless and spilled water containing semen onto the back of that girl,” he said.
Investigators subsequently seized a test tube containing Lai’s semen at his office.
Magistrate Li Chi-ho said the student’s act was “extremely insulting” to the victim, but agreed to first assess Lai’s psychological state and his suitability for either probation or community service in light of his guilty plea, his clear record and personal circumstances.
Lai’s bail was extended until sentencing in early September.
Indecent assault carries a maximum jail sentence of 10 years in Hong Kong, but is capped at two years when it is the only charge faced by the accused at the magistrates’ court.
