In Australia, a tourist was sentenced to 6 years in prison after chasing a thief who stole his bag
A Singaporean tourist chased down a person who had stolen a bag from their rental car and ran them over with the car.
In Australia, 29-year-old Singaporean Lincoln Ng Jing Kai, who chased a man who stole a tourist's bag and caused his death, has been sentenced to 6 years in prison. He caught up with the man who stole the bag from his rental car and ran him over. The Supreme Court of Western Australia sentenced him to 5 years and 9 months of imprisonment on November 2.
Kai was initially charged with murder. Prosecutors later downgraded the charge to manslaughter by gross negligence. The defendant pleaded guilty. The prison term is calculated from May 24, 2024. He may be eligible for parole after 3 years and 9 months.
The incident occurred in the city of Perth in May 2024. Kai had arrived on vacation with his girlfriend and her family. That day, they left their rental car near a restaurant. In the trunk of the car was a bag containing passports, an iPad, cash, and an Apple AirTag device. A man named Mark John Burns broke the rear window of the car and took the bag.
The next day, the family tracked the bag's location using the AirTag and called the police. At that moment, Burns was carrying the bag while riding an electric bicycle. The girlfriend's father told Kai to pursue the thief. They chased the thief for 10 minutes.
When Burns rode onto a lawn, one of the passengers asked to bump the bicycle slightly. Kai hit the rear wheel, and Burns fell. After the fallen man began to make threats, Kai panicked. Intending to put the car in reverse, he mistakenly hit the gas pedal instead.
As a result, the car struck Burns and dragged him for 25 meters. After witnesses shouted, Kai reversed the car, freed the victim, and waited for the police. However, Burns died in the hospital.
The judge described Kai's actions as vigilantism and an attempt to take the law into his own hands. However, he took into account Kai's remorse, his lack of prior convictions, and the fact that he panicked. Nevertheless, the judge emphasized that it was Kai himself who created the dangerous situation by engaging in the car chase.