Detention for Teenager who Tried to Scam Girlfriend in Kidnap Hoax

Source: The Standard

A teenager who pretended he had been kidnapped to try and trick his girlfriend into paying a huge ransom was has been sentenced to a stint in a detention center, a report said.

Chan Ying-wai, 18, arranged for his 17-year-old girlfriend to receive a text message saying he had been kidnapped and demanding a HK$500,000 ransom, RTHK said.

The girlfriend notified police who discovered the scam, the report said.

Chan pleaded guilty in Kowloon City Court to attempted fraud and wasting police time.

Magistrate Andrew Ma said such offenses would normally lead to a prison sentence, but decided to send him to a detention center after taking his age and previous clear record into account, the report said.

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Editor: Chen Minjie