Two men from the mainland have been arrested for robbing and illegally imprisoning a female mainlander in a Cotai hotel guestroom, with one of them allegedly raping the victim, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Cheong Kim Fong said during a special press conference yesterday.
The suspects, both surnamed Li, are aged 38 and 26 respectively.
According to Cheong, the victim initially met the Lis while exchanging currency in September this year. On Saturday, the 26-year-old Li messaged the victim on WeChat, saying that he had hit a lucky gambling streak and had a gift for her in his hotel guestroom.
When the victim entered the guestroom with him, the other Li ambushed her from the bathroom and grabbed her neck, binding her hands and body with a bathrobe belt. Fearing for her life, the victim cooperated with the suspects’ demand and handed over HK$11,000 in cash and casino chips, as well as providing her mobile banking passwords. The suspects then transferred 24,000 yuan from her bank account.
The Lis took turns guarding the victim, falsely imprisoning her in the room. When the older Li was alone with the victim in the room, he allegedly had unprotected sex with her twice against her will.
The victim managed to escape on Sunday while the two men were asleep and sought help from hotel security. The police, after notification by the hotel, arrested the two suspects in another guestroom of the same hotel.
Under questioning, they refused to cooperate. Cheong said that the victim was confined by the duo for about 17 hours.
The suspects were transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP) yesterday, facing illegal imprisonment and robbery charges. The 38-year-old Li also faces a rape charge.
Judiciary Police (PJ) officers escort the two hooded suspects from the mainland to a police vehicle outside the PJ headquarters in Zape yesterday. – Photo: William Chan
