Superintendent Alan Chung of Kowloon West regional crime unit. Photo: Handout. The victim, 39, was lured into Kowloon Bay industrial un...
Superintendent Alan Chung of Kowloon West regional crime unit. Photo: Handout. |
Police raided the residence in the New Territories after being contacted by the family, and just as officers were swooping on the location, the trader managed to climb out a window and drop to the ground, the force revealed on Sunday.
But the kidnappers had beaten the victim, 39, with hammers in their unsuccessful attempt to force the ransom payment and he suffered leg fractures requiring hospital treatment, a source told the Post. Officers arrested seven people and were hunting for about eight others, believed to be members of a Sun Yee On triad faction, including the suspected division boss.
Authorities were investigating whether any money was stolen from the man as he was forced to reveal the passwords for his bank and cryptocurrency accounts, acting Senior Superintendent Alan Chung of the Kowloon West regional crime unit said. According to the source, the digital currency holdings were worth more than HK$20 million. “[After being rescued], the victim was unable to log on to his account with a cryptocurrency trading platform. We believe he suffered a loss of memory,” Chung said. “We are still investigating.”
The last known kidnapping involving such a large amount of money was in 2015 when Queenie Rosita Law, granddaughter of late textiles tycoon Law Ting-pong, was abducted from her house and held in a mountain cave before family members paid a HK$28 million ransom. One member of the gang was later jailed for 12 years.
Police warned the public to remain wary of strangers wanting to set up a meeting involving large amounts of money. “There has been growing concern about criminals using different excuses to set up face-to-face meetings for potential transactions,” Chung warned. He asked people to select credible platforms for cryptocurrency transactions and avoid carrying a large sum of cash during the transactions.
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