Former pawnshop worker being traced for property appropriation

A former pawnshop worker is being investigated on allegations of appropriating pawned items from their former employer, the Judiciary Police (PJ) announced.

Meanwhile, another suspect, a local man aged 35 years surnamed Lio, has been apprehended due to his connection to the case.

The case was reported to the police on Jan. 12 by the pawnshop owner.

While inventorying goods at the pawnshop on November 7, 2022, the owner discovered that a gold necklace and watch, each worth HKD40,000, were nowhere to be found.

After questioning the team, the person at large admitted to the owner that he had appropriated the goods. He promised to return the goods at a later date, however, the promise was unfulfilled.

The police discovered that the watch was pawned to another pawnshop by Lio on March 18, 2022, 11 days after he took the two items. In return, he received HKD25,000 from the second pawnshop.

The police intercepted Lio at his residence near the private Kiang Wu Hospital. He confessed to the police that he had “helped a friend” pawn the watch. The HKD25,000 has been given to his friend.

Lio has also confessed to the police that he was aware of the source of the goods, making him an accomplice to the crime.

Following his confession and the results of subsequent investigations, the police have decided to charge him with fraud, fraud involving a major amount, and handling stolen goods.

On other cases, the Public Security Police Force (PSP) announced that two people have been arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol.

The first suspect is a local woman in her 30s surnamed Lei, who was involved in a traffic accident that led to the discovery of her intoxication.

Around 4 a.m. on Jan. 14, the police were notified of a traffic accident in Cotai. The accident was caused by a car in the center lane abruptly changing to the left lane and crashing into a neighboring vehicle.

Both drivers underwent breath testing. The suspect had a reading of 2.61g/L and the other driver’s reading was nil. She confessed she had consumed alcohol at dinner.

When questioned by the police, she said she had no memory of going home. However, she was sure she departed from home before the car accident.

Another case involved a local man, also in his 30s, surnamed Wong. He was caught by the police at a roadblock around 3 a.m. on Jan. 16.

He had a reading of 2.08g/L on an alcohol test and confessed to consuming alcohol at dinner.