Postman, fireman and police officer in courts for theft
The courts saw an unusual number of civil servants stand trial yesterday, with a postman jailed for trying to steal mail and a fireman and police officer pleading guilty to theft in separate cases.
The postman was jailed for one year for trying to redirect mail packages to himself and his girlfriend, while the fireman and police officer admitted stealing a credit card and snacks, respectively.
Leung Chi-ho, 32, earlier pleaded guilty at Tsuen Wan Court to seven counts of attempted theft at the airport's mail centre in February.
Magistrate Lambert Lee Ka-chai said Leung's crime was serious not because of the parcels' value, but because people trusted the post office.
Leung placed paper slips bearing the addresses of his home in Tai Po and his girlfriend's house in Sha Tin on the packages, which were meant for destinations abroad, the court earlier heard. He was found out by a senior postman. The packages contained eight bottles of hair dye worth HK$280, a HK$1,560 electronic Chinese-English dictionary, herbal tea, 20 paper roses and a box of chocolates, among other items. Leung tried to take HK$3,328 worth of goods.
A background report said Leung was trying to please his girlfriend, who liked receiving gifts.
Separately, police Sergeant Fung Pak-sum, who has served 30-odd years in the civil service, has tarnished his clean record and will probably lose his job and pension for stealing snacks. In Eastern Court, Fung, 52, a married father of two, pleaded guilty to theft. Magistrate Henry Mierczak fined him HK$2,000.
Fung set off an anti-theft alarm at a ParknShop store in Aberdeen in September. He had paid HK$5.10 for bananas but tried to walk out with gum, biscuits, beer and cake that cost $44.40 in total.
When a shop assistant stopped him, he gave her two bags, one of which he said did not belong to him. He took the other and ran. The assistant gave chase, joined by the shop manager and another colleague. Fung was caught when he fell. Police found HK$2,270 cash on him. He said he stole the items on impulse.
Meanwhile at Kwun Tong Court, Chan Kwok-pui admitted taking a fellow fireman's credit card from a fire station and using it to buy mobile phones, portable game machines, a laptop, a gold necklace and other items worth a total of HK$28,726.
Chan, 38, a fireman for 12 years, pleaded guilty to theft and four counts of obtaining property by deception. Magistrate Joseph To Ho-shing adjourned his sentencing to February 9.
Chan stole the Bank of China Visa card on September 4 at the Shun Lee Fire Station in Sau Mau Ping, then went on a spending spree in Sham Shui Po and Yuen Long. The court heard that Chan had handed over HK$20,000 to the Bank of China and all the items except for one mobile phone, which he said he had lost, to police. He turned himself in on September 12. His lawyer said Chan had split from his wife and moved away from her and their eight-year-old son before the theft. He had been diagnosed with depression.
