Filipina fighting deportation gets 14 days in jail for drug possession

Deportation proceedings are underway for the Filipina, court told

A Filipina recognizance paper holder who was found guilty May 8 in Eastern Court of possessing 0.69 gram of cannabis resin in her rented room in Causeway Bay was sentenced on Monday, May 22, to 14 days in jail.

As the defendant, M. Manrique, had been in remand for the same number of days since May 8, she had practically served out the sentence.

Magistrate Minnie Wat Lai-man said she could not be lenient in sentencing M. Manrique, 39, despite the small amount of dangerous drug found in her possession, because of her habitual use of drugs, as shown by a related previous conviction.

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At the start of the hearing on Monday, the defense lawyer discussed the content of a Drug Addiction Treatment Centre report as a well as a psychiatrist report on the defendant.

The lawyer said the Chief of Correctionals who issued the DATC report recommended that Manrique undergo a 12-month drug treatment program as an alternative to a jail term.

But the lawyer told Magistrate Wat that a year-long treatment was not feasible, as the defendant is already being processed for deportation by the Immigration Department.

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He preferred that the magistrate hand the defendant a lenient sentence so as not to interfere with the Immigration proceedings.

Manrique sobbed as the prospect of a prison term was mentioned, but calmed down after Magistrate Wat imposed 14 days.

Wat considered the DATC report’s finding that Manrique was not drug-dependent, but her use of illegal drugs had affected her life and the future of her children.

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The magistrate also considered that the defendant was a mother who had to take care of her children, and that the amount of illegal drugs found in her possession was small. These, Wat said, called for a 14-day sentence.

The magistrate noted that Manrique had two previous cases involving drugs, one of which was related to the just resolved case.

Wat said her court records show Manrique was arrested on Jan 21, 2022 by police who searched her rented rooms in a flat at 10 Yiu Wa Street  in Causeway Bay and found a small plastic bag containing 0.69 gram of cannabis resin, an extract from cannabis that addicts prefer to use.

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Two police officers also found instruments used for smoking the illegal drug and resealable plastic packets for packing it.

The discovery of the paraphernalia was among a set of charges brought by police against the defendant in the related case filed against her in April 2022.

In that case, Manrique was charged with ill-treatment or neglect of two children and possessing drug paraphernalia in the rented room in Causeway Bay, a part of Wanchai District.

In the current case, two officers gave evidence in court about the anti-illegal drugs operation they carried out on Jan. 21, 2022, during which they found the illegal drug in one of two rooms in a subdivided flat that Manrique was renting.

They said Manrique rented Rooms A and C, for $5,500 but occupied only Room A. It was in Room C where the officers found the illegal drug.                                              

In the previous hearing, the defense lawyer said Manrique was estranged from her husband and has six children, aged between 13 and 18 years old. Four of them live in the Philippines, while the two younger ones who were born in Hong Kong are staying with her here.

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25 people arrested for scamming Filipina in HK of over P5M, says report

 

Police display items seized from online scammers (File Photo)

Another Filipina in Hong Kong has been fleeced of more than Php5 million in a cryptocurrency scam, according to a report on GMA News.

No dates were mentioned, but the report said 25 suspects were arrested after the Filipina immediately reported the case to the police after realizing she had been duped.

It did not say, though, whether the money or part of it, has been recovered.

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The Consulate’s assistance to nationals section has not responded to a query on whether it was aware of the case.

The report comes just two months after another Filipina resident complained to the police and the Consulate after she lost HK$700,000 (also about Php5million) to a group that lured her into a supposed trading platform.

In both cases, the victims were made to think they were making a profit from their “investment” when all they were shown were manufactured figures in an online platform controlled by the syndicate.

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In the later case, the Filipina called “Joy” was offered the fake investment scheme on social media. She was told that she would make money by transferring money into some bank accounts.

Joy was encouraged to keep transferring money when her initial investment of Php1,500 ballooned to more than Php2 million according to her dummy account controlled by the scammers.

But when she asked to withdraw her money, she was told she would be charged 20% of the total amount. In truth, the scammers would never have given back a single cent of what she had put in.

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Joy reported the case immediately to the police, and the suspects were nabbed.

In the earlier case, the victim lost all her money in just one day. An offer to reward her small amounts by participating in a survey and small online jobs got her hooked to the investment scam.

After reporting to the authorities, she was told that the three Filipinas whose bank accounts were used to receive her money were all migrant workers in Hong Kong. But she was not made aware of any arrests being made following her complaint.

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At one stage, the police also told her that her case had been transferred from the Wanchai station to Tseung Kwan O because that was where one of the suspects had operated from. But again, no further information was given her.

She has now accepted that there is little chance that she will get her money back, but remains hopeful that the people behind the scam would be put behind bars.

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HK Labour Sec ‘saddened’ by death of Filipina DH while cleaning windows

 

Secretary Sun observes caregiving course in the Philippines during a visit last year

 Hong Kong’s Secretary for Labour Chris Sun has said that he was “deeply troubled and saddened” by the death of a Filipina domestic helper while cleaning windows last week, and has vowed to extend help to the victim’s family.

This was according to Department of Migrant Workers’ Secretary Susan Ople, who told GMA News that she had spoken with her counterpart on the phone Thursday night.

The focus of their conversation was the case of 38-year-old Jonalyn Galan, who fell to her death on May 15 while cleaning windows at her employer’s flat in Cheung Sha Wan.

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Ople said she had discussed with Sun the need to remind employers about the prohibition against dangerous window cleaning by foreign domestic workers as provided for in their standard employment contract.

The ban which became part of all FDW contracts starting in January 2017 prohibits the cleaning of windows unless they have grilles, and only the arm of the worker extends outside.

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Both officials promised to extend all possible help to the Filipina worker’s relatives.

Ople also promised that the governments of the Philippines and Hong Kong will work closely to prevent similar incidents from happening again.

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“We will extend full assistance and support to her bereaved family while working closely with Secretary Chris Sun and his department to ensure that the principle of ‘safety above all else’ is carried out as part of employers’ obligations,” Ople was quoted as saying.

The report said Galan’s two siblings are now in Hong Kong attending to the repatriation of the worker’s remains with help from the Philippine Consulate and the Migrant Workers’ Office.

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They will also meet with the deceased’s employer and the Hong Kong Employees’ Compensation Division to discuss a possible payout.

Under the updated rules of the Employee Compensation Ordinance, no less than $486,300 should be paid to the next-of-kin of a worker who died in the line of duty on or after Apr 13 this year.

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16 people arrested in new anti-illegal work operations

 

Those arrested included six women suspected of doing illegal work

Four consecutive days of anti-illegal work operations recently resulted in a total of 16 people arrested, said the Immigration Department.

 Those arrested in the raids conducted from May 15 to 18 were 14 suspected illegal workers and two employers.

 

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The operations carried out by Immigration officers covered 75 target locations including car parks, industrial and residential buildings, restaurants and retail shops.
 
Nine suspected illegal workers comprising three men and six women, aged 28 to 51, were arrested, along with two of their employers, one man aged 38 ang a woman aged 51.
 

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Among the workers, one man and two women were found to hold recognizance forms – indicating they are asylum seekers – while two men had forged HK ID cards.

A suspected illegal seller is shown with his goods

In a separate operation conducted with Hong Kong police, the operatives arrested five mainland visitors, made up four men and one woman, aged 26 to 46, on suspicion of carrying out parallel trading in Sheung Shui district.
 

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The mainland suspects dealt with cosmetics, basic household items and skin care products.
 
Illegal work is punished by a maximum fine of $50,000 and between two and three years in jail, depending on the visa status of the suspect.
 

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Those holding fake ID cards can be jailed for up to 10 years, and fined a maximum of $100,000.

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Employers of illegal workers bear the worst brunt, with a maximum fine of $500,000 and imprisonment for up to 10 years.

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10k katao sa HK ang nagpopositibo sa Covid-19 araw-araw, sabi ng gobyerno

 

Sa 10,000 katao na nagkaka Covid araw-araw, karamihan ay wala, o di malala ang sintomas

Aabot sa 10,000 katao sa Hong Kong ang nahahawaan ng Covid-19 sa araw-araw, ayon kay Health Secretary Lo Chung-mau, bagamat ayon sa isa pang eksperto, malamang na mas madami pa dito ang tunay na numero.

Sinabi ni Prof Lo sa isang panayam na ang binanggit niyang dami ng nahahawaan ng Covid-19 ay base sa pag-aaral ng Department of Health.

“Base sa tantiya ng Health Bureau, may mahigit sa 10,000 bagong kaso ng coronavirus ang naitatatala sa Hong Kong araw-araw,” sabi niya sa panayam na inilathala sa mainland nitong Biyernes. “Hindi naman natin mapipigilan ang pagkakaroon muli ng epidemya.”

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Pero ayon pa rin sa kanya, walang dapat ikabahala sa biglang pagtaas bigla ng mga kaso dahil hindi naman malala ang kundisyon ng mga nagkakasakit, at marami pa rin ang may pangontrol sa coronavirus dahil sa bakuna nilang natanggap.

“Kumpara sa fifth wave noong nakaraang taon, mas mahusay na ang pagbibigay ng serbisyong pangkalusugan sa ating siyudad,” sabi ni Lo. “Kahit dumami ang bilang ng mga naiimpeksyon, kakaunti lang ang mga nagkakasakit ng malubha, o ng namamatay.”

Pero ayon pa rin kay Lo, mas marami ang nagkakasakit ng Covid-19 ngayon kaysa noong Agosto at Setyembre ng nakaraang taon, kung kailan muling dumagsa ang bilang ng pasyente dahil sa pagsulpot ng Omicron variant.

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Base sa talaan ng Hospital Authority, may 2,700 na pasyenteng may Covid-19 ang ginagamot ngayon sa mga pampublikong ospital, na ang karaniwan ay nararatay nang 4.8 araw.

Para mas lalong mabantayan ang sitwasyon ay inumpisahang muli ng HA ang 24 oras na operasyon ng kanilang emergency command centre.

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But the surge would not pose serious challenges to the healthcare system provided the virus did not mutate suddenly, he said, noting the population had built up a strong immunity with about 85 per cent of residents having taken three jabs.

Pinaalalahan niya ang mga may edad o tinaguriang “high risk” na magpabakuna, o dagdagan ang bakuna, anim na buwan mula nang sila ay huling maturukan, o naimpeksyon.

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Samantala, ang isa pang eksperto na si Dr Leung Chi-chiu ay nagsabi na base sa isang pagsisiyasat ng University of Hong Kong, ang bilang ng mga nagkaka Covid-19 sa bawat araw ay aabot sa 50,000.

Sa isinasagawang pag-aaral, 10,000 katao ang tinetest para sa coronavirus tuwing linggo para makita ng mga dalubhasa kung gaano ito kabilis kumalat.

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Pero ayon kay Dr Leung, karamihan sa mga nagkakasakit ngayon ay hindi seryoso ang mga sintomas, samantalang ang iba ay walang kahit na anong nararamdaman na kaiba.

Sinang-ayunan naman ng ilang doktor ang lumalalang sitwasyon ng Covid-19 ngayon. Ayon sa isa sa kanila, puno lagi ang kanyang klinika simula nitong Mayo, at halos kalahati sa kanila ay may coronavirus, at karamihan ay mga may edad.

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Trial on for Filipina who denies assault on 2-year-old ward

 

The Filipina DH is on trial for alleged child abue

A Hong Kong man who accused his Filipina domestic helper of assaulting his two-year-old son thrice last March, said in a trial in West Kowloon Law Courts on Friday, May 19, that he called the police after reviewing CCTV footage and actually seeing the defendant “throwing” his son ward into a cot.

The employer, Mr Chan, 30, was the lone prosecution witness in the trial of Shaira Joy Umbao, who pleaded not guilty to three charges of “wilful assault causing injury to a child.”

At the opening of the originally planned one-day trial before Magistrate Leung Ka-kie, the police officers who arrested Umbao and investigated her begged off from giving evidence, leaving the victim’s father as the lone prosecution witness. The defendant is also slated to give evidence.

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Upon questioning by the prosecutor, Chan said the assaults took place on March 14, 15 and 16 this year inside his flat in Shek Yen House, On Yam, Kwai Chung, New Territories.

To support Chan’s accusations, the prosecution played back five CCTV footages that show the moments the alleged assaults took place

The first video clip taken from overhead on March 14 showed the helper pulling the child’s hands with force as to raise him as he lay on the sofa crying. The child’s crying and the helper’s angry voice got louder as she yanked the boy.

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The second footage showed the seated child’s legs being pulled with force to turn the boy about 90 degrees right towards the defendant.

The third footage showed the helper grabbing the child’s feet and pressing them against a Lego toy on the sofa. The boy at first seemed to be giggling but his voice turned into crying.

The fourth video showed a woman’s lower half-body leaving the masters’ room and a child lying on his right side on his cot. The prosecutor said the footage did not capture the moment when the defendant threw the boy into the cot, as alleged by the father, but added that Chan insisted he saw Umbao actually throw the boy into the cot.

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During cross-examination of Chan by defense lawyer Vivian Wong, the witness denied that since the Filipina started working for her in April 2021, she was only allowed to go out thrice on her holiday.

He denied he was letting the helper work during Umbao’s day off without pay, saying he was paying her $170 each day off that she was asked to work.

The witness also denied that he was letting the helper work from 6am to 1am. Chan disagreed but struggled to explain why the helper had no room and had to sleep in the living room.

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Wong also got Chan to indirectly admit monitoring his helper on CCTV even in wee hours, quickly adding that the camera was focused on Umbao’s feet only, after the defense lawyer asked her how he knew that the helper was awake watching TV drama or chatting with her mother on the phone.    

When pressed on his statement about the helper chatting with her mother at 4am, he said the mother was in a different time zone so she was already awake. Wong corrected him, saying Hong Kong and the Philippines are on the same time zone.

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The defense lawyer also got Chan to admit that he was treating Umbao harshly because he noticed that the helper and his wife have close and friendly relations. But he denied the two women were “sometimes holding hands while walking.”

Chan said at first he, too, was friendly to Umbao, but when he noticed that she and his wife were beginning to get close, he treated her harsher as a counterbalance.

Magistrate Leung adjourned the trial until May 23, when Umbao will give evidence and Wong will sum up the defense’s case.

The lawyer also applied for bail for Umbao, saying she had been already in remand for more than two months since her arrest and might be detained longer than her sentence, if convicted.     

Leung refused the bail application just the same.

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