A woman from the mainland was arrested on Monday for fraud, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Ho Wai Lok said during a regular press conference yesterday.
Ho identified the suspect as a 48-year-old woman surnamed Chen who said that she is a housewife.
According to Ho, the police received a report on Saturday from a middle-aged man from the mainland who said that he had been scammed out of 478,000 yuan (523,075 patacas) by Chen. The victim had gambled with Chen on Thursday in a casino in Cotai, and they met again the following day. Chen offered a favourable exchange rate for converting yuan into Hong Kong dollars. The victim agreed and transferred 478,000 yuan into Chen’s bank account. After receiving the transfer, Chen claimed that she needed to go exchange Hong Kong dollars for their deal and told the victim to wait at the casino. However, Chen never returned and then made excuses to avoid giving the victim the money. The victim finally suspected that he had been scammed and decided to report the case to the police.
Ho noted that Chen was intercepted on Monday in her hotel guestroom in Cotai. The police confiscated a mobile phone, along with HK$10,000 in cash and HK$24,500 in chips from her. Under questioning, Chen refused to cooperate.
The police are still investigating the whereabouts of the ill-gotten money.
Chen was transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP) on Tuesday and is facing a fraud charge.
Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Ho Wai Lok looks on during yesterday’s regular press conference. – Photo: Ada Lei
