Three secondary school boys have been accused of knocking down a five-year-old girl in order to steal her mother’s iPhone.
Two Form 4 students, aged 15 and 16, pleaded guilty to one count of theft in Kwun Tong Magistrates’ Court yesterday, and remain in police custody until their sentencing on Aug. 30, reports Ming Pao. The third boy, a 16-year-old Form 2 student, is awaiting trial.
On June 4 this year, the teenagers waited on a set of stairs connecting Lung Cheung Road and Po Kong Village Road in Wong Tai Sin, Apple Daily reports.
At around 8:30pm, a 32-year-old woman surnamed Chan walked the stairs with her five-year-old daughter and eight-year-old son.
As they passed the Form 2 student, he “accidentally” bumped into them, causing the girl to fall over. Feigning concern, he asked Chan to call an ambulance.
When she pulled out her rose gold iPhone 6s, the 15-year-old grabbed the smartphone and ran away with the Form 4 student.
The teen who had knocked Chan’s daughter over was restrained by Chan and a passerby. He was taken into police custody and gave up his co-conspirators’ information under caution.
Officers apprehended the 15-year-old boy later that evening, near where the robbery had occurred, and found Chan’s HKD8,000 phone in his pocket. He admitted to the theft, but his lawyer claimed he had been following the older boys’ orders.
The other Form 4 student was arrested at his home the next day and admitted that he took part in the theft, but only as a lookout.
The Form 2 student denied one count of theft and will go on trial on Aug. 31. He was released on HKD5,000 bail and a HKD1,000 cash surety from his father.
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