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Police sergeant omits key details in statement of arrest of pregnant woman
A police sergeant forgot to write down in a statement whether a 43-year-old pregnant woman, charged with obstruction, had handed her identity card to officers despite clearly recalling the checking process, a court heard on Wednesday.
Lau Siu-fan was charged with obstructing a police officer for failing to comply with the police when they stopped and searched her on Wing Yiu Street in To Kwa Wan on January 20, 2021.
She gave birth to her premature baby three days after the incident.
Lau and the three police officers who stopped and searched her appeared in Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts on Wednesday morning.
Testifying in court, station sergeant Lau Tsz-fan said she was conducting an operation that targeted illegal immigrants and overstaying visitors. Her colleague spotted the pregnant woman at 2.15pm that day and stopped her because she looked suspicious and tried to avoid eye contact, she continued.
The sergeant then said after she checked the identity card of the pregnant woman, the latter suddenly sat down on the ground and said, “I'll pass out if you arrest me.” The woman also asked the police officers to call an ambulance.
The sergeant and her colleague then helped the pregnant woman up, but the woman was uncooperative and sat down again after taking a few steps, causing the officers to handcuff her.
The sergeant continued that she looked at the woman's body and asked her whether she was just fat or if she was pregnant. However, the woman didn't answer and told the sergeant, “If you are saying I am fat, then I am fat.”
The sergeant only knew the woman was pregnant when medics arrived and confirmed it.
The defense counsel then challenged the sergeant as to why she only mentioned that the woman handed over her identity card after re-watching the security footage but didn't mention it in the first written statement.
The sergeant fell silent for a few seconds and replied that she forgot whether she had checked the identity card of the pregnant woman. She also denied that she was informed of the woman's pregnancy by the woman's sister and the neighbors.
Deputy magistrate Wong Tsz-ho said whether the pregnant woman had handed over her identity card or not is the key element in this case and he could not understand how the sergeant could forget to include this information in her written statement. The sergeant admitted it was her negligence.
She gave birth to her premature baby three days after the incident.
Lau and the three police officers who stopped and searched her appeared in Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts on Wednesday morning.
Testifying in court, station sergeant Lau Tsz-fan said she was conducting an operation that targeted illegal immigrants and overstaying visitors. Her colleague spotted the pregnant woman at 2.15pm that day and stopped her because she looked suspicious and tried to avoid eye contact, she continued.
The sergeant then said after she checked the identity card of the pregnant woman, the latter suddenly sat down on the ground and said, “I'll pass out if you arrest me.” The woman also asked the police officers to call an ambulance.
The sergeant and her colleague then helped the pregnant woman up, but the woman was uncooperative and sat down again after taking a few steps, causing the officers to handcuff her.
The sergeant continued that she looked at the woman's body and asked her whether she was just fat or if she was pregnant. However, the woman didn't answer and told the sergeant, “If you are saying I am fat, then I am fat.”
The sergeant only knew the woman was pregnant when medics arrived and confirmed it.
The defense counsel then challenged the sergeant as to why she only mentioned that the woman handed over her identity card after re-watching the security footage but didn't mention it in the first written statement.
The sergeant fell silent for a few seconds and replied that she forgot whether she had checked the identity card of the pregnant woman. She also denied that she was informed of the woman's pregnancy by the woman's sister and the neighbors.
Deputy magistrate Wong Tsz-ho said whether the pregnant woman had handed over her identity card or not is the key element in this case and he could not understand how the sergeant could forget to include this information in her written statement. The sergeant admitted it was her negligence.
