A man from the mainland has been arrested for defrauding a male currency exchange dealer out of HK$200,000 with counterfeit money, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Chong Kam Leong said during a regular press conference yesterday.
The 22-year-old suspect is surnamed Wei. He told the police he’s jobless.
According to Chong, Wei and a mainlander struck a currency exchange deal in a hotel guestroom in Zape after they had chatted on a messaging app on Sunday. The victim then transferred 187,000 yuan (210,000 patacas) to Wei, while Wei handed two stacks of cash to the victim in return and prepared to leave.
The victim immediately checked the banknotes and found that they were all counterfeit money. He immediately prevented the suspect from leaving the room and sought help from hotel security guards. Police officers soon arrived and arrested Wei at the scene.
Under questioning, Wei claimed that he did not know they were counterfeit money and that he had been hired by “some people from the mainland” to carry out the deal in Macau.
Wei has been transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP), facing a fraud charge, Chong said.
Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Chong Kam Leong looks on during yesterday’s regular press conference.
– Photo: William Chan
