A male mainlander has been scammed out of 47,500 yuan (53,100 patacas) after he scanned the Alipay QR code of a stranger, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Chong Kam Leong said during a regular press conference yesterday.

According to Chong, on June 8 when the victim in his sixties was walking near the Barrier Gate checkpoint, a man approached him and offered to sell him internet cards for 30 patacas each. The victim scanned the QR code provided by the seller to purchase the card. However, due to a network issue, he was unable to confirm whether the payment was successful.

It was not until the victim returned to the mainland on June 10 and checked his account transaction records online that he discovered 47,500 yuan had vanished. Suspecting that he had been scammed by the internet card seller, he reported the case to the police on Friday. 

Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Chong Kam Leong looks on during yesterday’s regular press conference.
– Photo: William Chan