Buzz
The released video later forced the store to apologize and refund $100 million to the boy's family.
The incident took place at a toy store in Langham Place Mall, Hong Kong, China on the evening of May 22nd. Specifically, 6-year-old Lucas and his parents came here to shop.
When Lucas's father, Mr. Cheng Pok-man, went outside to take a phone call, he suddenly heard a loud noise from inside the store. Upon returning, he saw his son standing next to the shattered Teletubbies statue.
According to the staff, Lucas didn't accidentally bump into the statue but out of mischief, the boy kicked and caused the 1.8m tall statue to topple over.
Lucas stood beside the shattered Teletubbies statue. (Photo: HKFP)
Upon realizing the grave consequences caused by his son, Mr. Cheng proposed compensating the full value of the statue, which amounts to 52,800 Hong Kong dollars (approximately over 150 million Vietnamese dong). However, the store owner only charged him 33,600 dollars (around 100 million dong).
The store 'discounted' the compensation for Lucas' family from over 150 million dong to just 100 million dong. (Photo: HKFP)
Everything was smoothly resolved until a video surfaced on social media, revealing that young Lucas did not kick the statue to make it fall as the staff claimed.
The truth unveiled
In the video, it's evident that the boy merely accidentally bumped into the statue. The statue, much larger than his body and lacking any support, quickly toppled over and broke into pieces.
Furthermore, the store representative has reached out to the boy's family to apologize for this misunderstanding and has refunded the entire compensation amount previously provided. The representative also added that the statue has been on display at the store since November 2021 and has never caused inconvenience to customers.
Through this incident, both parents and the toy store should reflect on their mistakes.
Regarding the store, they pledge to reconsider their layout, especially the placement of valuable items like the broken statue. 'We will assess the safety measures for displaying products and learn from this experience to avoid similar incidents,' the representative stated.
As for parents, when taking young children to shopping centers, especially places with fragile and expensive items, they should be more vigilant in watching over their children and give them clear instructions to prevent accidents like the one mentioned above.
