A mainlander stole HK$250,000 from an illegal currency dealer but accused the dealer of stealing from him, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Chong Kam Leong said during a special press conference on Wednesday.
According to Chong, a 34-year-old mainlander, surnamed Zhang, who claimed to be a hotel owner, decided to meet up with the dealer at a hotel in Cotai at 2 a.m. on Wednesday. Chong pointed out that Zhang had just lost money at the casino, so he decided to steal HK$250,000 from the dealer and locked the cash in the hotel room safe. Soon after, Chong added, Zhang rushed out of the hotel room and went to the lobby to allege that the dealer was trying to steal money from him.
Chong said that, meanwhile, the dealer panicked as he still had cash on him, so he locked himself in the hotel room bathroom. Chong noted that the dealer called the police, adding that as the officers arrived at the hotel room, they were able to recover all the cash locked in the safe.
Chong also said that the police arrested Zhang who has been transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP) where he faces robbery and false accusation charges.
This photo taken on Wednesday shows the cash recovered from the thief’s hotel safe.
Photo courtesy of TDM
