A “serial thief” who posed as a policeman to bully primary school students and the elderly to hand over their possessions has been sentenced to four years’ imprisonment.
SCMP reports that 36-year-old Chan Yin-kwai pleaded guilty to 13 charges today, including one count of robbery, three of falsely pretending to be a public officer, one of common assault, and eight of theft.
Chan stole four phones, jewellery and petty cash from an 80-year-old woman, and four primary and secondary school students in various parts of Kowloon between January 1 and 19, District Court heard.
He would apparently isolate young students, show them false police identification, then intimidate them into handing over their cash and mobile phones.
On January 4, the 36-year-old followed a woman in her 80s into an elevator and snatched a gold chain from her neck, the court heard.
On January 12, Chan reportedly beat up a 14-year-old student, robbed him, then stole from four supermarkets.
Ming Pao reports that when he was arrested, police officers raided his apartment and found 18 boxes of chocolates, two boxes of cookies, two tins of cocoa powder, and a box of sweets which had been stolen from various supermarkets.
In mitigation, the defence argued that Chan had been unemployed for six months when he committed the thefts, and said the crimes were “purely motivated by money”.
Judge Amanda Woodcock said that Chan’s victims “require protection” as they are “vulnerable members of society”, making his offences particularly serious.
Woodcock also noted Chan’s extensive criminal record, which began when he was 15 years old. However, she urged him to study in prison, having read in his mitigation letter that he “always wanted to learn a trade”.
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