A Hong Kong student who starred in a popular web documentary about secondary school public exams has been placed on probation after a court agreed to give him “one last chance” following his second shoplifting offence in a year.
Eastern Court accepted a probation officer’s recommendation and handed Tang Ngai-hong a 12-month probation order on Thursday after he pleaded guilty to theft earlier this month.
The 19-year-old admitted stealing a bag of fruit and two packets of potato chips worth a total of HK$61.80 (US$7.87) from the Fresh supermarket at Kornhill Plaza North in Quarry Bay on January 5.
The offence took place just five months after Tang was fined HK$3,000 for stealing nearly HK$700 worth of food items from the Kowloon Bay branch of Japanese discount chain store Don Don Donki on May 8, 2024.
Acting Principal Magistrate David Cheung Chi-wai said he would give Tang “one last chance” given his timely plea. The defendant must maintain the peace and observe an array of conditions, including a requirement to attend psychological counselling sessions.
Tang, now a first-year student at the University of Hong Kong School of Professional and Continuing Education, was the main subject of a documentary web series about the Diploma of Secondary Education examination by YouTube channel Trial and Error.
