Thieving shopkeeper caught by own security camera

A shop's security cameras caught a thief at work, but it was the shop owner rather than a customer who turned out to be the guilty party. Fenglan Liu, co-owner of Best and Less on McLean St, Waitara, New Zealand, pleaded guilty in the New Plymouth District Court yesterday to stealing a customer's wallet and its contents worth $150 on March 9.

The court proceedings were translated to Mrs Liu in the dock by a woman standing beside her. The court heard that when the customer had left her wallet on the counter, Mrs Liu had hidden it by placing clothing on top of it. She put two $50 notes under the counter and hid the wallet in a box out the back of the store.

Then, when the customer realised her wallet was missing, she had gone back to the shop and Mrs Liu helped looked for it, but failed to return it. When the customer reported the loss to police, police had looked at the shop's video footage which clearly showed Mrs Liu concealing the wallet.

Mrs Liu finally confessed, telling police she had taken the money as payment for trousers allegedly stolen by the victim's sister. In sentencing, Judge Allan Roberts commented that the act would affect Mrs Liu's future business activity. He convicted Mrs Liu and fined her $500 and $130 court costs.