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| District Court (Google Maps photo) |
A Filipina acccused of bringing a drunk man to a hotel and stealing his mobile phone, Rolex watch and wallet containing credit cards that she used to purchase food and groceries, has been refused bail after offering $50,000 cash.
Mylene Navarro, 48 years old and unemployed, appeared for
the first time at the District Court on Tuesday (Nov. 4) for one count of theft
and six counts of fraud, all in violation of the Theft Ordinance, which
provides for a penalty of up to 14 years in jail.
Navarro was unrepresented, and Judge W.K. Kwok informed her
that Legal Aid was still evaluating her application for a free lawyer and doing
a means test, which would take six weeks. He thus adjourned the case to Jan.
27, to which she agreed.
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“Now the issue is whether to grant bail or not,” he said,
and asked what she could offer.
Navarro offered around $50,000 in cash, surrender of her
passport and proof of her address,
But the prosecution objected, citing “exceptionally strong”
evidence against her, including a water bottle found inside the hotel room
which bore her fingerprints, CCTV footages which showed her using the stolen
credit cards to make purchases and her admission to police that she used the cards.
In addition, the prosecutor said, Navarro had previous offences
in 2024.
Judge Kwok turned down Navarro’s bail offer, advising her
that she has the right to appeal to the Court of First Instance, and sent her
back to jail.
Navarro’s case began when she allegedly took a drunk Chinese
man named Lau to Rainbow City Inn on Pitt St. in Yau Ma Tei on Nov. 23 last
year and took his mobile phone, watch and wallet containing personal documents
and cash of $2,000.
Yau Ma Tei Police alleged that the stolen items amounted to $96,095.50.
The wallet contained, among other things, five credit cards
that would lead her to allegedly commit six
fraud offenses by using them on a one-day shopping spree.
The six fraud charges were originally labelled as “obtaining
property by deception” for which section 17 of the Theft Ordinance prescribes a
maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. Fraud is punishable with 14 years in
prison under section 16A of the Theft Ordinance.
The police complaint said Navarro first went to a Seven-11
store on Bowring Street and ran up a bill for $2,292.50 which she paid by using
a credit card issued by the Standard Chartered bank to Lau.
She then allegedly used Lau’s credit card issued by Hongkong
and Shanghai Banking Corp. in buying $204 worth of products at a Seven-11 store
on Jordan Road.
Navarro then allegedly went to a Circle K store on Jordan
Road and charged $1,204 worth of products to Lau’s Standard Chartered Bank
Mastercard.
She again allegedly used the credit card in paying $138 for
a meal at a McDonald’s restaurant on Yen Chow St. in Sham Shui Po.
Navarro allegedly used Lau’s HSBC Mastercard a fifth time
when she bought $227 worth of items at another Seven-11 shop at the MTR Prince
Edward station.
Finally she allegedly bought groceries at a Wellcome Store
on Lai Chi Kok Road in Mong Kok, running up a bill for $2,214 which she charged
to Lau’s American Express card.
