A balding bank clerk who stole $43 000 (about R300 000) from a client's account in Hong Kong to pay for expensive hair-loss treatment was in custody Thursday after pleading guilty to theft.
Alex Chan, 32, stole the money because he was terrified of going bald and had already racked up debts of more than $16 000 on anti-balding treatments.
According to testimony at a court hearing Wednesday, Chan's fear of hair loss drove him to steal money from a dormant bank account at DBS, where he worked, to pay off his debt and seek further treatment.
Defence lawyer David Boyton told Hong Kong's Eastern Court that Chan committed the crime out of "vanity, not greed," and appealed for him to be spared a lengthy jail term.
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Chan, who has since paid back all the money he stole, was remanded in custody until May 17 when he is scheduled to be sentenced, Thursday's South China Morning Post reported.
Magistrate William Ng called for a psychological report on Chan's fear of hair loss to be prepared before he decides how to punish him. It was not clear if the hair-loss treatments had been effective.
Hair-loss treatments are popular among Hong Kong men who have seen rates of baldness climb sharply in recent years because of stressful work environments and unhealthy lifestyles. - Sapa-dpa
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