The Department of Justice has applied to the Court of Appeal to review the sentences imposed on four defendants in a case involving the alleged assault of a detainee at Pik Uk Correctional Institution. It argues that all four sentences were clearly too lenient.
The detainee was allegedly attacked on 26 December 2023 outside the B3-A activity room in Block B. A correctional-services officer allegedly used a floor-mop handle repeatedly, puncturing the detainee’s rectum.
The injury reportedly required two operations and the use of an artificial stoma, a surgical opening used to allow bodily waste to leave the body while the affected area heals.
The correctional-services assistant pleaded guilty to intentionally causing serious bodily harm and to a further conspiracy-related offence involving an attempt to obstruct justice. That charge concerned an alleged effort to promote a false explanation that the detainee’s bleeding had been caused by self-inflicted injuries. The assistant was sentenced to three years in prison.
Three detainees were also sentenced in connection with the case. One pleaded guilty and two were convicted after trial. They received additional prison terms of between four and six months, on top of existing sentences ranging from three years and eight months to 14 years for offences including drug trafficking.
The sentence-review application is numbered CAAR4/2026. The Judiciary website showed that no hearing date had been listed for the application.