A DEBT-PLAGUED diamond merchant was jailed for three years yesterday for stealing $250,000 worth of diamonds from the shop where he worked.
'He was up to his neck in debt amounting to $750,000,' Judge Jackson said in the District Court. 'He is a realist and I have not the slightest doubt that he is filled with remorse.' Chan Wai-yin, 43, admitted stealing the gems from the safe of Seven Seas Jewellery Enterprises Ltd.
He sold most of the stolen diamonds to buyers, but pawned some in order to pay loansharks and creditors.
Chan worked as a supervisor in the company's workshop and as a sales manager, but he also had his own shop in Tsim Sha Tsui.
He told the judge he fell into debt after being cheated by a customer in Singapore, and stole the diamonds between 1992 and 1994.
