A mother yesterday blamed her arrest for shoplifting on a trick by her four-year-old daughter.

Ng Miu-suen, 32, was convicted of theft after claiming that the girl had planted stolen food in her bag as a prank.

Eastern Magistrate Robert McNair said that he found Ng's defence unconvincing, describing her as unreliable. She was fined $500 and ordered to pay a further $500 in costs.