A POLICEMAN gambled away a $200,000 bribe he was paid to steal and destroy a vital exhibit in a drug case, the High Court heard yesterday.
Detective Constable Hau Wing-sum, said after his arrest that he was paid the money by an informer who was anxious to escape conviction, the court heard.
Asked what happened to the cash, he allegedly said: 'I lost all the money gambling.' Hau, 26, pleads not guilty to stealing heroin from Sheung Shui police station and to conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.
The drug's disappearance led a judge to order a permanent stay of proceedings in the trial of Chu Kam-to, 44, and his wife Wong Siu-hung.
In a statement made after his arrest, Hau is said to have admitted stealing the heroin for Chu. He claims the confession statement was fabricated by police.
But Detective Senior Inspector Chan Tsan-wing, who read it to the jury, denied Hau had been beaten, threatened, or offered inducements.
