3 Filipinos in court for gambling, violation of gathering rules

By Daisy CL Mandap 

A 'fish-hitting' machine like this was among the items seized from the games center

Three Filipino male residents who were arrested while gambling in a games centre at the time the strictest anti-virus gathering restrictions were in force in Hong Kong, all pleaded guilty to various offences in Eastern Court today, Nov. 3.

The offences were committed on Aug 14 this year, at the height of the third and most deadly wave of infections to sweep across Hong Kong.

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The restrictions imposed by the Secretary for Food and Health which were in effect from Aug 1-18 included a prohibition on the opening of games or amusement centers (Capp. 99 subs f) and the gathering in public of more than two people (Cap. 99, subs g)

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First defendant R. Ledesma, who admitted violating the two regulations, was sentenced by Magistrate Winnie Lau to 10 days in prison for each of the two offences, but with the sentences to run concurrently.

Magistrate Lau said that a jail term was necessary as the defendant had ignored the risk to public safety and the possible burden on medical frontliners when he committed the offences.

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Ledesma was also fined $3,000 for managing the gambling establishment on the first floor of 19 Canal Road in Wanchai. He admitted being paid $800 a day for running the gambling establishment for an unknown person.

He decided to plead guilty to all the charges against him despite being told by the magistrate that he could ask for an adjournment so he could seek legal advice, as a prison term was inevitable in his case.

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The two other Filipino men, A. Tagbatan and R. Miranda, were fined $800 each after admitting a charge of illegal gambling.

The prosecution said all the defendants had prior convictions, but only Ledesma had a record related to gambling.

Lau said the sentences already reflected the 1/3 discount given to all accused for their guilty plea.

Three other people, all non-Filipinos, were similarly charged with gambling at the said premises but were not in court for the hearing.

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All the defendants were arrested during a raid on the illegal establishment by a team from the Wanchai Police Department, under authority by the Department for Food and Health.

On application by the prosecution and with the consent of the defendants, the court ordered that various gambling paraphernalia seized from the illicit establishment, including betting machines for “fish hitting” and “insect shooting”, be destroyed.

In a separate case, another Filipino man was fined $500 in Kowloon City Court after pleading guilty to gambling in a gambling establishment in Yaumatei on Aug 2.

A.A. Gomez, 46 years old, was among eight people arrested by police when they raided a second-floor flat on a building on 8 Battery St, Yaumatei, at 12:35pm on that day. His co-accused were all sentenced in a previous hearing, but his case was adjourned because he had no interpreter in court.

After announcing the sentence, Magistrate Ada Yim reminded Gomez not to return to an illegal gambling establishment.

But Gomez replied, “That’s impossible. Thank you,” before walking away. – with a report from Vir B. Lumicao

 

Filipino jailed 8 months for credit card theft, deception

By Vir B. Lumicao 

Dagohoy was sentenced at Eastern Court after admitting the two offences

A Filipino restaurant worker who admitted stealing a credit card in March and attempting to use it to pay for a cartful of grocery was sentenced in Eastern Court on Oct 28 to eight months in jail.

J. Dagohoy was supposed to stand trial for one count each of theft and attempting to obtain property by deception on Oct 13, but he decided to plead guilty to both charges at the last minute before Magistrate Vivian Ho.

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Dagohoy was accused of using the stolen credit card to shop at a Wellcome supermarket in Discovery Bay on Mar 20.

Police said the defendant went to the store on the evening of Mar 20 and filled his shopping cart with $2,975 worth of items, including boxes of chocolates, whiskey, socks and stockings, as well as surgical masks.

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He presented a Visa credit card to pay for the goods, but the cashier told him there was a problem with the card.

The defendant insisted he owned the credit card and was its authorized user, but the saleslady called the police. He was arrested but released on police bail.

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Dagohoy appeared in court without a lawyer on Jun 15 and tried to enter a plea, but Magistrate So Wai-tak ordered him to find a lawyer to represent him because his case was serious.

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On Aug 10 he pleaded not guilty to the charges before another Eastern magistrate, Bina Chainrai, who scheduled the trial.  

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Weakened ‘Goni’ seen to bypass HK after deadly hit on Bicol region

By The SUN 

Goni's aftermath in Buhi, Camarines Sur (photo by Mark Nazzarea)

Super Typhoon Goni (Philippine name: Rolly) which left a trail of death and destruction in the Bicol region on Sunday, has weakened into a tropical storm and is currently moving across the central part of the South China Sea.

Goni is forecast to move westwards and skirt around 800 km south of Hong Kong tonight, Nov 2, and tomorrow morning. Its direct threat to the territory is relatively low.

The Hong Kong Observatory said that at 5pm, the storm was about 840 km south-southeast of Hong Kong, plodding 18 kilometers per hour towards Vietnam with sustained winds of 75kph near the center.

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The powerful tropical depression, said to be the strongest this year, killed at least 16 people in the Philippines where it also devastated countless of homes and farmlands and closed the international airport in Manila for 24 hours.

Communication with many hard-hit areas remains cut off so the full extent of the damage is difficult to ascertain.

But initial reports from the Regional Office of Civil Defense said Goni left at least 10 dead when lahar from Mayon Volcano swept down Travesia, a village in Guinobatan, Albay early on Sunday.

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At least six more deaths were reported in Catanduanes, BBC reported.

As many as one million people were reportedly displaced from their homes, with about 350,000 still staying in evacuation centers.

In Catanduanes, as many as 275,000 people were cut off from electricity and communications due to the gusting winds.

Many areas in CamSur remain under water (VP Leni Robredo's FB page)

Various media reports say President Rodrigo R. Duterte visited the worst-hit province of Albay after being widely criticized for not taking a direct hand in relief operations before the super typhoon slammed into the country.

The President, accompanied by Senator Bong Go, personally thanked local officials for their “foresight” in issuing warnings about the typhoon and evacuating residents to safety.

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“You have to credit the foresight of the local officials (who) warned the residents well in advance and there was an evacuation long before it actually happened. For that alone, I'd like to thank the officials of Guinobatan,” said Duterte, who flew in directly from Davao.

Philippine Red Cross chairman Dick Gordon said Virac, the capital of Catanduanes with a population of 70,000 people, was severely damaged when Goni, with winds of up to 225 kph, first made landfall on the island as a super typhoon on Sunday.

The typhoon subsequently made three more landfalls within the Philippines before it began to move away late Sunday.

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Gordon was quoted by BBC as saying inspection teams reported 80-90% of Virac’s buildings were damaged by the typhoon.

Meanwhile, a new tropical storm is approaching the Philippines and is expected to make landfall later in the week. The latest weather bulletin showed Tropical Storm Atsani was about 910km northeast of Manila, and is forecast to move north slowly across the western North Pacific.

Atsani will linger over the seas east of the Philippines in the next two days before it may move towards the Luzon Strait and enter the northern part of the South China Sea, said the HK Observatory, although its track and intensity are still uncertain.

In Hong Kong, the northeast monsoon is expected to bring slightly cooler weather tomorrow. It will be mainly fine overnight, with temperatures falling to about 21 Celsius in urban areas and 2 degrees lower in the New Territories tomorrow morning.

The maximum daytime temperature tomorrow is forecast at about 26 Celsius. There will be cloudy periods later with moderate northeasterly winds, becoming fresh easterlies later tomorrow.

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Govt warns of tighter rules amid a new outbreak of infections

By The SUN 

Halloween revelers gathered in Victoria Park, many of whom did not wear masks

Hong Kong’s health secretary has warned that social distancing measures may be tightened anew as three new local cases of Covid-19 were reported today, Nov 2, whose main source is unknown.

Health Secretary Dr Sophia Chan expressed alarm at the outbreak traced to a hotel in Lantau, during an interview with RTHK.

Chan warned the authorities would re-impose strict gathering measures if people continued to violate social distancing rules.

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“I hope people (will) have self-discipline. I understand people would like to relax as the pandemic has lasted for a long time. But large crowds should be avoided for the overall coronavirus situation in Hong Kong,” she said.

Just last Friday, the government eased some of the restrictions, including allowing up to six people to eat together in restaurants, and four in bars. Their service hours were also extended until 2am.

However, the ban on more than four people gathering in public was kept in place.

 

The Lantau hotel where the new cluster of infections has been traced (RTHK photo)

The Centre for Health Protection reported a total of six cases today, half of whom were imported, and the other half, linked to a staycation at the Seaview Holiday Resort in Mui Wo between Sunday and Tuesday (Oct 25-27) last week.

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The first to show symptoms was a 26-year-old woman in the group of eight people who developed a fever on Wednesday, Oct 28.

On Friday, Oct 30, a 26-year-old man from the group developed a cough and runny nose.

The third linked case is a 15-year-old boy who met up with the woman in a family gathering on Tuesday and developed a cough on Saturday. The school he attends in Fanling had to be closed for two weeks for disinfection.

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CHP said it would distribute specimen bottles from the patients’ neighbors, colleagues and schoolmates, as well as the hotel guests and staff.

A respiratory disease expert, Dr Leung Chi-chiu, said people should avoid taking gathering during staycations in local hotels to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

“If there is an outbreak inside the hotel, that may affect other customers, that may cause a super-spreading event. We need to take care,” he said. 

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The three imported cases involved a 38-year-old female domestic worker who just arrived from Indonesia, a 35-year-old male returnee from Pakistan, and a 25-year-old man from Russia.

There are now a total of 5,336 confirmed cases in Hong Kong, but only 94 remain in 19 public hospitals. Of these, nine are in critical condition, five are serious, and the remaining 80 are in stable condition.

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Case of Filipina accused of $860k theft goes to District Court

 By Vir B. Lumicao 

The upmarket estate in Homantin where the alleged thef is said to have taken place

The case of a Filipina domestic helper accused of stealing $860,000 worth of branded watches, jewelry and gold bars from her female employer will be transferred to the District Court at the end of the month.

A prosecutor informed Kowloon City Court today, Nov 2, about the transfer of the case against Edarlyn Emperador, 50, to the higher court.

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No plea was taken and Emperador was returned to custody. The magistrate adjourned the case until Nov. 30

Emperador was alleged to have carried out the theft between Oct 1 last year and Aug 6 this year inside the flat of her employer at Block A, Celestial House in Homantin.

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She was arrested by police on Aug 7 when her employer discovered the theft after realizing that her Rolex watch had gone missing from her closet.

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Aside from the Rolex watch, Emperador is accused of stealing three Patek Philippe watches, a Piaget watch, a Roger Dubuis watch, one pair of Hermes earrings, a platinum Roger Dubuis necklace and gold bars.

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The prosecution said pawnshop receipts were recovered from the maid’s belongings.

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Super Typhoon Rolly leaves at least 10 people dead in Bicol region

By The SUN

Rolly's ferocious winds ripped the roof off Naga Airport (photo from CAA Phl)

At least 10 people have been reported killed while three others are missing in the Bicol region in the aftermath of super typhoon Rolly (international name: Goni).

According to initial reports from the Office of Civil Defense in Region 5, nine people have so far been confirmed dead in Albay and one in Catanduanes.

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But in the latest weather bulletin from Pag-asa issued at 11pm Sunday, Rolly had already been downgraded to tropical storm as it rapidly weakened after sweeping across much of Luzon, where it made four landfalls.

By 10pm Sunday, Tropical Storm Rolly was located hovering over the West Philippine Sea, and was estimated to be about 150 km northwest of Calapan City in Oriental Mindoro

One of the dead people in Albay being carried away (Reuters) 

Rolly had intensified into a super typhoon packing winds of up to 225 kilometres per hour before it hit the Bicol region early in the day, displacing nearly 400,000 people from their homes.

The strongest typhoon of the year also caused volcanic rocks to bury around 300 houses in Albay, ripped off roofs, toppled houses and power lines, and caused flooding in many areas.

Some of the houses buried by volcanic rock in Albay

The OCD also said 1,013 passengers were stranded in ports across the Bicol region.

After slamming into Bato, Catanduanes at 4:50 a.m. Sunday, Rolly made three more landfalls: in Tiwi, Albay at 7:20 a.m.; in San Narciso, Quezon at noon; and in Lobo, Batangas at 5:30 p.m.

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But it was downgraded back to being typhoon when it rapidly lost steam by about noon as it swept across Luzon, including Metro Manila. In anticipation of the super typhoon, the capital closed its international airport and its 12 million residents battened down their hatches.

Pag-Asa's latest bulletin shows Rolly now hovers over the West Phl Sea

In its 11pm bulletin, Pag-asa said Rolly was expected to leave the Philippine area of responsibility on Tuesday morning, and would likely remain as a tropical storm.

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However, it is still expected to bring light to moderate, with at times heavy rains, over Ilocos Region, Cordillera Administrative Region, Cagayan Valley and Central Luzon.

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Rough to very rough seas with swells of between 2.5 and 5 meters will prevail off Northern and . Central Luzon, the western seaboards of Batangas, Occidental Mindoro, and eastern seaboards of Quezon and the Bicol region. Sea travel remains risky in these areas.

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Filipina, 2 Indon DHs among 7 new Covid-19 cases

By The SUN 

Newly arrived travelers waiting for their test results at HKIA

The foreign domestic workers – one Filipina and two Indonesians – were among seven  cases of Covid-19 reported today, Nov. 1, all but one imported.

The source of infection of the sole local case, a 42-year-old Chinese female detained for overstaying at Mau Tau Kok Immigration Centre, is not known.

The patient was arrested at Oriental Lander Hotel in Mongkok on Sept 28 and taken to the Mong Kok police station. Two days later, she was moved to the Castle Peak Bay Immigration Centre, and then Ma Tau Kok.

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The woman had no travel history during the incubation period so all detainees who shared a cell with her at Mong Kok police station, CIC and Ma Tau Kok, as well as her close contacts, will be sent to quarantine.

Briefing reporters this afternoon, Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan from the Centre for Health Protection said the Filipina, a 34-year-old helper who arrived from Manila on Oct 30 on Hong Kong Airlines Flight HX782, developed symptoms on Oct 16.

Despite this, she was allowed to board her flight to Hong Kong after presenting a negative swab test result as required of all travelers flying in from designated high-risk countries like the Philippines.

After declaring her symptoms on arrival at the airport, she was taken to a hospital for observation and was found positive yesterday, Oct 31. 

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The first Indonesian, a 31-year-old female, also arrived on Oct 30 from Jakarta on Cathay Pacific flight CX796. She was asymptomatic but was found infected after a test at the Hong Kong International Airport.

The second Indonesian patient, a 30-year-old female was under quarantine at The Charterhouse Hotel in Wanchai when she tested positive.

One of the three remaining imported cases was a 30-year-old male cabin crew of Trukish Airlines Flight TK070 from Turkey who arrived Oct 30 and was under hotel quarantine at the Novotel Citygate in Tung Chung.

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The other imported cases were a 30-year-old male from Dubai who arrived on the same day and flight as the Turkish air crew, and an 18-year-old female from Britain who arrived on Oct 30 on British Airways Flight BA207.

The virus is known to spread rapidly when people eat together

There were also around 10 preliminary positive cases reported today, including a cluster of five patients. One of them is a 26-year-old female clerk in Tai Po whose source of infection is unknown.

The other cases linked to her are a 26-year-old male who joined the first patient in an outing with five other peole at Silvermine Beach Resort in Mui Wo where they had meals together.

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Another is a 15-year-old male relative of the female clerk who developed flu symptoms, and studies at Fanling Lutheran Secondary School, which will close for 14 days for disinfection.

Two other close contacts of the female patient also tested preliminary positive, including an employee of Cable TV.

Dr Lau Ka-hin a manager at the Hospital Authority, said that so far, a total of 5,096 patients with confirmed or probable infection have been discharged.

Ninety-three confirmed patients are being treated in 19 public hospitals, among whom nine are in critical condition, five are serious and the remaining 79 patients are stable.

Meanwhile, Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Edward Yau, said he is hopeful Hongkongers will be able to start flying to Singapore by the end of November.

Yau, speaking to reporters after attending a TV interview, said details of a “travel bubble” with Singapore that Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam mentioned last week were being finalized by officials.

Travel agencies are most likely to start selling tickets by mid-November, he said. In the initial phase of the travel bubble, at least one designated flight is expected to fly daily between the two cities.

Yau said more flights could be scheduled if demand for travel grows, but measures would also be in place to suspend travel arrangements should Covid-19 cases in either city surged.

He also said Hong Kong authorities are discussing with Guangdong officials a plan to reopen borders with the mainland as a crucial move to boost the SAR’s economy and tourism sector.