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| Illustrative photo created with deevid.ai |
What is the penalty if a domestic helper is convicted of stealing $2,500?
In the case of Indonesian Alvionita Vini, who pleaded guilty in Kwun
Tong Court Tuesday (Oct. 28) to stealing $500 and $2,000 in separate occasions
from her employer, the penalty appeared to be roughly equivalent to working for
two weeks as domestic helper.
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Acting Principal Magistrate Leung Ka-kie handed the 33-year-old Indonesian a 10-day prison term for the first theft of $500 and two weeks’ jail for the theft of $2,000 -- both violations of section 9 of the Theft Ordinance.
As Magistrate Leung ordered that the two sentences run
concurently, the final jail term is two weeks.
Both thefts – the first last Sept. 15 and the second on an unknown day in February 2025 -- took place inside a flat at The Parkside in Tseung Kwan O, New Territories, according to a Tseung Kwan O Police complaint filed last Sept. 17.
The minimum allowable wage for foreign domestic helpers in
Hong Kong is now $5,100 per month.
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While Vini may have keep locked up for only half a month, the financial cost to her will be far more than the salary she did not earn for the period.
As she now has a criminal record, she will no longer be allowed to continue working in Hong Kong.
