A local chauffeur was arrested on Thursday for cheating a friend out of HK$51,500, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Lai Chio Hong said during yesterday’s regular press conference.
The local suspect surnamed Lei, who is in his 30s, told the police that he works as a chauffeur.
According to Lai, a man engaged in the vehicle maintenance business reported to the police on November 13 last year that he had been defrauded out of HK$51,500 by a friend. He told the police that he has known the suspect since 2017. In late October last year, the suspect proposed to transfer the name of his private car to the victim as collateral as he urgently needed HK$50,000, promising to pay him HK$1,500 as monthly interest.
According to Lai, Lei claimed in November that he wanted to sell the vehicle to a car dealer for HK$95,000, and promised to pay the money back to the victim after selling it. Lei then asked the victim to sign a power of attorney so that the dealer could sell the car. However, the victim never received any money from Lei and later lost contact with him. The victim suspected that he had been defrauded and reported the case to the police.
According to Lai, PJ officers located Lei and arrested him in his flat in the northern district on Thursday. Lei admitted the crime and said he had a habit of overspending and spent the victim’s HK$50,000 on his daily expenses and gambling.
Lei was transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP) on Friday, facing a fraud charge involving a considerable amount, officially defined as ranging between 30,000 and 150,000 patacas, according to Lai.
Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Lai Chio Hong poses during yesterday’s regular press conference at the Public Security Police (PSP) pressroom.
