Two local men have separately fallen victim to online investment scams, resulting in a total loss of HK$2.64 million (2.72 million patacas), Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Leng Kam Lon said during a regular press conference yesterday.
According to Leng, a middle-aged local man joined a stock investment group on Facebook in May, where he met someone online claiming to be an “investment expert” who taught him how to invest in stocks. The “expert” also provided the victim with a link to an “investment platform”.
Leng noted that the victim opened an account on the platform and completed real-name verification. Between July 15 and August 4, he transferred a total of HK$2.6 million into his investment account. Within a few days, the platform showed a purported profit exceeding HK$10 million.
However, when the victim attempted to withdraw the “profit” last Wednesday, the platform refused the request, claiming that he needed to pay a “settlement fee” of HK$1 million. After requesting a refund, the victim lost contact with the “expert”, and he could no longer log into his investment account. Realising he had been scammed, the victim reported the total loss of HK$2.6 million to the police on Monday.
In the other case, Leng said, a young local man came across an advertisement for AI stock analysis on Facebook and met someone online who offered to help him open an investment account. This person provided a link to an “investment site” and guided the victim to register on the platform. The victim later transferred HK$40,000 into a designated bank account.
Afterwards, the platform displayed profits of several thousand Hong Kong dollars. However, that person requested an additional HK$200,000 under the pretext of “applying for new shares” and threatened a 20 percent penalty if the victim did not comply. When the victim refused and asked for a refund, he lost contact with that person. Suspecting he had been scammed, he reported the total loss of HK$40,000 to the police also on Monday.
Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Leng Kam Lon looks on during yesterday’s regular press conference. – Photo: Ada Lei
