Woman Fined HK$5,000 After Being Caught With Paint

A 22-year-old woman has been fined HK$5,000 for carrying a bottle of paint during a day of protests last November, after Eastern Magistracy concluded that she had intended to use the paint to damage public property.

Cheng Yan-suet, who said she was a waitress, was convicted of one count of possessing an item with intent to damage property.

She was arrested after police found her with a bottle of black paint, that contained a tiny amount of gasoline, at a traffic intersection in Wan Chai.

Magistrate Veronica Heung said the fact that Cheng was carrying the paint without a brush and that she ran when a police vehicle approached her showed that she had intended to use it to cause damage.

Heung said further proof of Cheng's intentions could be found in the fact that paint on her gloves was confirmed to be the same as some which had spilled out of the bottle.

In handing down sentence, the magistrate said a fine of HK$5,000 was appropriate as any items covered in paint would require a great deal of cleaning.