The Judiciary Police (PJ) nabbed a man from the Chinese mainland for stealing a male friend’s HK$1 million (1.025 million patacas) on Wednesday, PJ spokesman Cheong Kim Fong said during a regular press conference yesterday.
Cheong identified the suspect as a 37-year-old man surnamed Lu who claimed to be jobless. Cheong said that the victim is a middle-aged mainlander. Both have been friends for only about three months.
According to Cheong, on Tuesday, the victim arrived in Macau with HK$1 million in cash in a black backpack and stayed with Lu in a hotel guestroom in Cotai, Cheong said, adding that the victim did not tell police whether he smuggled the money across the border or just withdrew it in Macau.
Around noon on Wednesday, the duo returned to the room to rest, Cheong said, adding that the victim placed the backpack beside the bed before falling asleep.
Waking up around half an hour later, the victim discovered that Lu had left the room and, upon checking the backpack, realised that the HK$1 million in cash was gone, Cheong said. The victim then reported the matter to the police.
Upon arriving at the scene, Cheong said that PJ officers discovered that the suspect had entered a casino immediately after leaving the hotel room, adding that Lu was intercepted by officers at the casino that same afternoon.
According to Cheong, the investigation revealed that Lu had stolen the money while the victim was sleeping. Lu subsequently gambled away HK$900,000 of the stolen cash, Cheong said, adding that PJ officers recovered the remaining HK$100,000 in cash from him.
Lu has meanwhile been transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP), facing a theft charge.
Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Cheong Kim Fong looks on during yesterday’s regular press conference at the PJ headquarters in Zape. – Photo: Armindo Neves
