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Man who stole co-worker's breast milk awaits sentencing

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An assistant inspector telecommunications at the Office of the Communications Authority pleaded guilty to a charge of theft on Friday (1 September) at the Hong Kong Eastern Magistrates' Courts, HK01 reports.

The defendant, Yiu Ming Kin, 42 years old, was arrested at The Wu Chung House in Wan Chai in July, after a 26-year-old working mother reported someone had stolen two bottles of breast milk from the office refrigerator. Shortly after the incident, the office purchased a refrigerator with a lock for employees.

After being questioned by management, Yiu admitted to stealing the breast milk and drinking one of the bottles. He also admitted to the police in a statement, he stole the milk out of curiosity.

The defendant's lawyer told the court Yiu was a compulsive gambler who had been battling gambling problems for over 20 years. He makes HK$30,000 a month and was HK$300,000 in debt. The stress of being in debt had become overwhelming and he committed the crime as a resolution "to save himself", his lawyer said.

It was also revealed in court that the defendant's fiancé has put their marriage on hold because of the case. Additionally, Yiu said he was devastated by harsh comments made about him by netizens, and as a result, he closed all his social media accounts.

He has aplogised to his employer, the colleague who he stole from, and the public, and pledged he will never do something like it again.

The court will look at the defendant's probation officer's reports, psychological report, and social welfare report, before handing down sentence on 20 October.

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Photo/ 123RF 

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