A mainlander was arrested on Sunday for stealing 22,000 patacas from three fellow passengers as well as a pair of earrings and a wooden ornament from a female passenger on a Beijing-Macau flight, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Ho Chan Nam said at a regular press conference on Monday.
Thieves who steal property while travelling on a plane are colloquially known in Cantonese as “jet rats” (“feigei louhsyu”).
The 31-year-old mainland suspect surnamed Kuo told the police that he is a businessman.
According to Ho, three mainland victims reported to the Public Security Police (PSP) on Friday that cash totalling 22,000 patacas they had put in their luggage had been stolen. Ho added that another victim, a female, reported to the police on Saturday the loss of a pair of earrings and a wooden ornament that were in her small backpack.
The four victims sat in front of and behind Kuo. Their suitcases and backpack were all placed in the overhead luggage compartment.
PSP officers later transferred the victims and Kuo, whom they assumed to be the suspect, to the Judiciary Police. Kuo denied the accusations, but police officers found the earrings in Kuo’s pocket, while the stolen cash was hidden down the side of his seat.
Kuo has been transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP), facing an aggravated theft charge, according to Ho.
Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Ho Chan Nam looks on during Monday’s regular press conference.
– Photo: William Chan
