The Judiciary Police (PJ) nabbed a domestic helper for stealing her employer’s jewellery on Wednesday, PJ spokesman Chao Teng Hin said during a special press conference on Friday.
Chao identified the suspect as a 37-year-old Filipina surnamed Riptola, adding that the victim is a middle-aged local woman.
According to Chao, the victim hired Riptola in June 2025. While the victim was cleaning her flat in the northern district, Chao said, the victim discovered that several pieces of jewellery were missing from a book cabinet.
When questioned, Chao said that Riptola admitted to the theft and confessed to having pawned the items, using all the ill-gotten proceeds for gambling. The victim reported a loss of six items of jewellery valued at 32,021 patacas and expressed the intention to take legal action.
Following the report, Chao said, the Judiciary Police confirmed that Riptola had begun stealing the items early this month.
In total, Riptola stole six pieces of jewellery from the victim’s flat and took them to two pawnshops in the central district, pawning them for a total of HK$10,900.
Chao said that PJ officers successfully recovered all the stolen items from the pawnshops, and the victim confirmed them as her property, adding that the recovered jewellery has been preliminarily valued at 17,845 patacas.
Riptola was transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP) on Friday, facing charges of fraud and theft.
Judiciary Police (PJ) officers escort the hooded fraud and theft suspect to PJ van outside the PJ headquarters in Zape on Friday. – Photo: Armindo Neves
