A husband blackmailed a leading local soft drink supplier for HK$300,000 out of desperation and pressure from his mother-in-law, his lawyer told a judge yesterday.
Transport worker Tam Shui-wing, 27, threatened to contaminate the soft drinks of 'Company X' because he faced family pressure, especially from his mother-in-law, who picked on him and often created tension within the family, barrister Trevor Beel said.
The judge ordered the name of the company to be withheld.
Tam, who pleaded guilty to one count of blackmail before District Court judge Patrick Li Hon-leung, admitted to threatening Company X in a letter and a phone call this year. Tam gave his name as 'Mr Chan Thirty' in communications with the company.
Mr Beel said Tam earned HK$7,000 a month while his wife, a nurse, earned HK$18,000 a month.
The couple, who had known each other since primary school and had dated since they were 15, have a five-year-old daughter.