A man and two women from the mainland were arrested on Tuesday for “cross-hand” fraud, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Leng Kam Lon said during a special press conference yesterday.
Leng identified the trio as a 40-year-old male surnamed Xia, a 36-year-old female surnamed Huang, and a 56-year-old female surnamed Lei, who all claimed to be jobless.
According to Leng, the police recently discovered a fraudulent scheme known as “cross-hand” fraud. Leng explained that this tactic involves a group of scammers targeting gamblers in casinos.
The modus operandi proceeds as follows: scammers initiate conversations under false pretences to gain the victim’s trust, after which they offer “assistance” with betting. One of the scammers then intentionally blocks the victim’s view during the betting process, seizing the opportunity for their accomplice to steal chips. They then falsely claim that they placed the bet on the victim’s behalf but lost, completing the scam.
Leng noted that on Tuesday afternoon, PJ officers on patrol in a casino in Cotai witnessed the three suspects interacting with a male gambler from the mainland at a baccarat table. Leng said that the suspects had met the gambler earlier that day. Huang and Xia approached him, asserting that they could place bets on his behalf, and persuaded him to hand over HK$2,000 in chips. As Huang attempted to place the bet, Xia and Lei stood up to block the victim’s view, preventing him from verifying whether the bet was actually placed. Instead of placing the bet, Huang stole the chips. After the round ended, they falsely claimed that the bet had failed, successfully defrauding the victim. PJ officers caught them red handed, at which point the victim finally realised he had been scammed.
The police discovered that since mid-July, Huang, Lei, and Xia had committed at least five similar offences, with each victim suffering losses ranging between HK$1,000 and HK$3,000, totalling HK$10,000, which was divided equally between the three suspects.
The police seized a mobile phone, HK$26,500 in chips, and HK$53,000 in cash from Huang; a mobile phone, HK$27,600 in chips, and HK$600 in cash from Lei; and a mobile phone, HK$34,000 in chips, and HK$6,000 in cash from Xia.
The suspects were transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP) yesterday, each facing a charge of fraud.
Judiciary Police (PJ) officers escort the three hooded fraud suspects to a PJ van outside the PJ headquarters in Zape yesterday. – Photo: Ada Lei
