Gang threatened to chop off man's fingers during ordeal
Two members of a Chinese gang who kidnapped and robbed a fellow national as well as threatening to chop off his fingers and post them to his mother in China unless he paid them a further €15,000 have been jailed by Judge Desmond Hogan at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.
Zhao Zhi Guo, aged 26, with an address at Gandon Hall, Gardiner Street, Dublin 1, was jailed for six years but had the final two years suspended after he pleaded guilty to falsely imprisoning 23-year-old Liu Xao Lin between October 8 and 9, 2002.
Xu Yang, aged 21, from Goldsmith Terrace, Bray, Co Wicklow, was jailed for four years but had the last year suspended after he pleaded guilty to false imprisonment and robbery of Mr Lin.
He also admitted two counts of robbery on Chinese couple Ji Hui and Tong Sun on October 24, 2002.
Sergeant Fergus Twomey told Mr Dominic McGinn BL, prosecuting, that Mr Lin was taken to a flat on Chelmsford Avenue in Ranelagh at knifepoint by four Chinese men after he finished work in a chip shop in Dun Laoghaire shortly before 1am on October 8, 2002.
Yang was an acquaintance of his and met up with him to go to an Internet café after he finished work.
The gang pretended to kidnap Yang also and told Mr Lin it had nothing to do with him but that "the Boss" wanted to see him because he owed someone money.
They took Mr Lin to a separate room in the flat and the gang of four robbed him of €2,300 cash he had on him for the deposit on some accommodation.
Guo slapped him across the head after finding €5 euro in his pocket that Mr Lin did not tell them he had.
They took his bank card and forced him to give them his PIN number before withdrawing €1200 from his account in two separate transactions and said they would let him go if he gave them a further €15,000 within the next three days.
Sgt Twomey said they threatened to chop his fingers off and post them to his mother in China unless he came up with the cash.
He rang a number of friends to try and raise the money but he said he could only get €4,800 and they agreed this was sufficient.
He was taken to meet a friend in a pub the next day but Mr Lin received a call from another while they waited to say they couldn't get the money.
They returned to the flat and ordered him to ring his parents in China and arrange for them to get the money.
They waited until midnight on October 9 and he phoned his father who said he could get US$8,000.
The ringleader of the gang arranged for his associates to collect the cash and once they were sure this had been done they released Mr Lin after a 27-hour ordeal.
Mr Lin made a complaint to gardaí and identified Guo and Yang from garda photographs.
A few days later Guo was arrested after Mr Lin spotted him in a restaurant on O'Connell Street.
He admitted being present but thought that a genuine debt was owed to the gang's ringleader.
Sgt Twomey said Yang was fully cooperative and named five gang members after his arrest. He was paid €400 euro and said he only did it because he was destitute and had no money.
Det Gda Patricia Whelan then told the court that Yang was one of three men who tied up a young Chinese couple at knifepoint in their flat in Ely Place, Dublin 2, after the victims had advertised for flatmates.
They robbed a laptop computer and a camera after they could not get any money out of the couples' bank accounts.
Judge Hogan said the two men had pleaded guilty to "serious and heinous" offences. There was no doubt that Guo was an integral part of not only this offence but other offences perpetrated on the injured party.
Yang did show contrition and while he might not have been the main player he contributed to the facade that was set up.
"But I will take into account that both pleaded guilty and will be in prison away from home and will not have the support of family and friends and certain language difficulties will isolate them in prison."
