A homeless 78-year-old Hong Kong man held up a shopkeeper at knifepoint because he wanted the comfort of a prison cell for the night, a court heard Wednesday, according to dpa. Tsang Wing-on threatened the shopkeeper with a knife Tuesday and told him to call the police so that he could have a bed and food for the night, Kowloon City Magistrates Court was told. The defendant's wish was granted - but he was denied an extended stay behind bars after pleading guilty when a magistrate decided not to jail him for robbery but instead to put him on a good behaviour bond for a year. A magistrate told the man he had committed "a foolish act" that merited a prison sentence but said he had decided to make him a special case, government-run radio station RTHK reported. Welfare benefits for the elderly in Hong Kong are meagre, and elderly women and men in the city of 6.9 million are often seen collecting cardboard to sell for recycling to earn extra money.
