2 assault cases in Central involving Filipinos adjourned

 

Wide shot of Chater Road where the assault allegedly happened

A Filipino bar tender charged with assaulting a fellow Filipino on Chater Road today pleaded not guilty to the offence when he appeared before Magistrate Ivy Chui in Eastern Court.

Mark Anthony Malunao, 35, entered his plea after being read the particulars of the charge of assault occasioning bodily harm filed against him.

He is accused of assaulting Edgardo A. Sumang at the bus stop along Chater Road on July 9 last year,  a Sunday, so the street was  closed to vehicular traffic.

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Magistrate Ivy Chui set down the trial date for Feb. 7, and extended Malunao’s bail of $500 until then.

The prosecutor said it will present four witnesses, while the defense will have two, including the accused.

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Chui told Malunao to go directly to the Duty Lawyer Service after renewing his bail so he could secure the services of counsel during his trial.

Previously, the defendant showed up in court without legal representation at least twice, prompting the magistrate to warn him that if he appeared again without a lawyer the next time he would have to defend himself as the case had dragged on for too long.

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In a separate court, a domestic worker was formally charged with assaulting two fellow Filipinas, including a friend, outside a building on one of Central’s alleys on Nov 5 last year.

No plea was taken from Julie G. Balacuit, 47, and she was allowed to post a $500 bail until her next court appearance on Mar 7.

She was accused of assaulting Rodelia Dangayo and an unknown female outside no 21 Li Yuen Street in Central.

The prosecutor asked for an 8-week adjournment to secure the medical report of the alleged victim, and for the accused to seek legal advice.

The magistrate told Balaquit that while on bail she should not approach or speak with the prosecution witnesses.

 

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Gov’t allays fear over pork safety, supply in wake of swine flu report

 

The government today told the public not to be concerned over a report that a pig farm in Yuen Long had tested positive for the African Swine Fever (ASF) virus, nor should they worry about the supply of pork after the farm’s 1,400 pigs are culled this week.

 “ASF is not a zoonotic disease and will not infect humans, hence does not present any human health and food safety risk,” the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) said today.

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“Regardless of whether the pigs are infected with ASF, pork cooked thoroughly is safe for consumption. Members of the public do not need to be concerned,” it added.

“The present case does not affect the operation of local slaughterhouses nor the overall supply of live pigs,” AFCD added.

In a report, AFCD said the present ASF case was discovered because of a proactive emergency measure on handling dead pigs on local pig farms.

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Under this measure, which has been in effect since January 3, all farms are required to collect and submit to the AFCD nasal swab samples from pig carcasses for ASF virus testing. The carcasses can only leave the farms upon confirmation of a negative result.

AFCD staff inspected a licensed pig farm in San Tin, Yuen Long on January 9, collected 32 samples from pigs and tests found one of the samples positive for the ASF virus.

The AFCD has immediately suspended transportation of any pigs from the farm and arranged for the culling of all its pigs this week. It has also imposed a 3-kilometer monitoring zone around the farm; so far, this has not turned up any new positive samples.

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 “The discovery of pigs infected with ASF on the farm demonstrates that the measure can proactively curb the spread of the virus and effectively stop pigs infected with the ASF virus from leaving the farm, thereby interrupting the transmission of the virus among local pig farms,” it said.

An AFCD spokesman also said positive cases should be promptly handled, as ASF is very lethal to pigs.

“If the spread is not contained, a large number of pigs will die and hence seriously impacting pig farmers and the pig rearing industry,” the spokesman said.

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Man accused of assaulting wife told to stay away from her

 

The accused was warned by the magistrate not to contact his wife while he's on bail

A Filipino man who was accused in court on Monday of assaulting his wife was allowed to post bail but was told to stay away from their Wan Chai flat where the alleged incident happened.

Bienvenido G. Villanueva, Jr., 51, was told by Magistrate Ivy Chui that he must give another address to the court before 12 noon the next day as part of his bail conditions.

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He was charged with one count of assault occasioning bodily harm for allegedly hurting his wife, Bernadette, in the flat they shared on Fook Gay Mansion on Lockhart Road in Wan Chai on Jan 6.

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He was released on $500 bail until the next hearing of the case on Feb. 5.

The prosecutor said they would not oppose bail because Villanueva had a clear record. He was also said to be gainfully employed as a delivery personnel earning $15,000 a month.

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Magistrate Chui told Villanueva that until the case is resolved, he must not contact his wife and to stay away from the flat that they shared. He should also not leave Hong Kong, reside at the new address he would furnish the court, and report to the Wan Chai police station every Saturday, between 6 to 9pm.

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Both sides agreed to the adjournment of the case to give the police more time to conduct further investigation.

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$119 chocolates cost DH $2,000

 

(Photo from Google Maps)

Three packs of chocolates worth $119.70 became 17 times more expensive for a Filipina domestic helper after she pleaded guilty to shoplifting them from a grocery store.

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Maribel Larioza, 54 years old, was fined $2,000 in West Kowloon Court today for theft.

This was exactly the amount she posted as bail to avoid being detained while the case was being heard.

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Principal Magistrate Don So imposed the penalty after noting that Larioza had paid for candies she had also bought, but not the chocolates.

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Larioza was charged after she took the chocolates without paying, from a ParkNShop store in Mei Foo Sun Chuen in Cheung Sha Wan, Kowloon on June 17, 2023.

She was charged with violating Section 9 of the Theft Ordinance.

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Friends who came with her to the court expressed relief that she was not jailed.

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Ex-DH who slept in parks admits overstay, denies theft

 

Filipina was arrested at dawn in this neighborhood. 

A Filipina domestic helper who had been sleeping in a park in Sham Shui Po for two months after her employer terminated her contract, pleaded guilty to overstaying when she appeared today at the West Kowloon Court.

But F. Lacaba, 35 years old, pleaded not guilty to the theft of an Octopus card containing $70 in value, saying she had just picked it up and was intending to return it to the nearby MTR station that morning.

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Magistrate Jason Wan thus withheld her sentence for the first offense and scheduled a trial on the second case for Jan. 22, so that he could hand down his decision on the two cases at the same time.

Magistrate Wan was responding to a request  by Lacaba’s duty lawyer for the earliest possible trial date because she had been in detention for almost two months, which may exceed the prescribed punishment for a theft of $70 -- assuming she is found guilty.

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Lacaba was arrested at 5:03 am last Nov. 23 after she was spotted by a police officer on patrol on Yu Chao St., Sham Shui Po.

When the officers found a personalized Octopus card in another person’s name among her possessions, they arrested her and took her to the nearby police station.

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During investigation, Lacaba said she had just found the Octopus card and was intending to return it to the Sham Shui Po MTR station, but it was still closed.

Police contacted the owner who said the cash value was intact, showing that she never used the card.

Lacaba was working as a domestic helper whose contract started on April 15, 2023. However, her employer terminated her on Sept. 24, 2023, or five months after she started working.

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She was unable to find a new employer within the two weeks she was allowed to stay on, and had been sleeping at a park at night until she was arrested.

Her lawyer said she did not apply for bail because she had nowhere to stay.

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Waiter charged with assault, drunk and disorderly conduct

 

Junction where the incident happened

A Filipino waiter appeared in Eastern Court today on charges that he assaulted a police officer who intervened when he became drunk and disorderly in Lan Kwai Fong last Oct. 29.

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Denver Bautista, 36 years old, was accused of assaulting a police sergeant “in the due execution of his duty” at the corner of Wo On Lane and D’Aguilar St. in Central.

Under Section 26 (2) of the Offenses against the Person Ordinance, such an offense is punishable by imprisonment of up to two years.

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From the same incident, he was also charged with being drunk and disorderly, a violation of the Summary Offenses Ordinance, which sets a punishment of a fine of up to $2,000 and imprisonment of up to two months.

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“… you did behave in a disorderly manner in a public place while drunk,” Central District Police said in the charge sheet dated Oct. 31, 2023.

Principal Magistrate Ivy Chui adjourned the case to Jan. 30.

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Bautista was freed on bail of $5,000.

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Filipina admits drug possession, penalty put off

 

The accused admitted drug possession when she appeared at West Kowloon court

A Filipina asylum seeker pleaded guilty today at West Kowloon Court to possession of dangerous drugs, but her sentence was withheld for two weeks so she could be examined to find out if she has become addicted.

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Cherry Ann Cereneo, 33 years old, admitted violating the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, but Magistrate Jason Wan said he could not hand down a proper sentence without first determining her health status, because the drug found on her was cocaine.

He ordered a Drug Addiction Center report for Cereneo, and adjourned the case to Jan. 23.

He ordered her returned to jail custody.

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A report from Mong Kok Police said Cereneo was arrested after a taxi she was riding in was stopped in a checkpoint on Dundas St., Mong Kok at 1:30am on Aug. 9, 2023.

She attracted the attention of police officers because she was acting suspiciously. She was searched and police found two small plastic bags containing 0.28 gram and 0.9 gram of cocaine, based on analysis conducted by the government laboratory.

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Her duty lawyer, in mitigation during the hearing, almost got her in worse trouble when he said the drug was actually not hers, and that it was given to her by a friend for safekeeping.

“You better rethink your mitigation,” interrupted Magistrate Wan, saying this fact could mean she was engaged in drug trafficking, which is a lot more serious than possession.

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The lawyer immediately withdrew his statement, and focused on seeking a light penalty because Cereneo was remorseful and had pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity.

He said the Filipina arrived in Hong Kong in 2021 as a domestic helper, but was later terminated. She has since applied for non-refoulement, and now subsists on $1,100 allowance monthly from a non-government organization.

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