11 Years' Jail for Elderly Singaporean Who Robbed a Bank in HK

A 75-year-old Singaporean man was sentenced to 11 years in jail by the Hong Kong High Court on March 11 for separate charges of robbery and attempted robbery.

- Lok Jian Wen

Leong How Seng had pleaded guilty a day earlier to the crimes committed.

In considering Leong's age when arriving at the punishment, the judge said in his written judgment that a light sentence would reduce the deterrent effect, but noted his cooperation with the authorities.

In April 2022, Leong, then 73, robbed a China Construction Bank (Asia) branch in Kowloon's Nathan Road with a pistol-looking device, and fled the scene with around HK$14,000 (S$2,400) in cash. He said he used around HK$7,500 to pay rent to his landlord, HK$1,000 for a new bag and HK$100 to top up his Octopus transport card.