3 jailed for letterbox raids
Envelopes steamed open and cards replicated then returned to owner
Three people involved in raiding letter boxes, stealing bank cards and letters, have been jailed.
Win Cheung Kwan-wah, 40, was sentenced in the District Court yesterday to two years and eight months imprisonment. She had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to steal 1,560 letters, 41 bank cards and other items in August and September last year, and conspiracy to handle stolen items.
Cheung was found to be part of a crime syndicate that targeted letter boxes in old buildings in Mong Kok, Sham Shui Po and Tsuen Wan, searching for bank cards to steal and replicate.
District Court Judge Josiah Lam Wai-kuen said the crime was serious, given the large number of thefts involved. Lam said while Cheung was not the syndicate leader, "she and her partners planned meticulously and systematically in stealing and handling the letters".
"She repeated the offence while on bail. This adds to her criminal liability," he said.
The owners of the stolen bank cards had not lost any funds from their accounts, the court heard.