A 62-year-old local woman was arrested last Wednesday for pocketing HK$6,000 in cash a man had left in an ATM in Estrada Marginal da Areia Preta, Public Security Police (PSP) spokesman Lam Keong said during a regular press conference on Tuesday.
The suspect surnamed Lam told the police that she’s unemployed. The victim’s personal information was not released.
The man attempted to withdraw HK$6,000 from the ATM at around 11:25 a.m. on April 3 but did not receive any cash. He believed the cash had got stuck in the machine because of a malfunction and left, the PSP spokesman said.
However, when the man was on his way home he received an SMS message from his bank saying that the cash had been successfully withdrawn. He rushed back to the ATM but discovered that the HK$6,000 had vanished. He enquired at the bank branch at around 1 p.m. and the bank confirmed his withdrawal transaction had been completed, according to the PSP spokesman.
The PSP spokesman said the victim reported the case to the police on April 25. Thanks to CCTV footage, the police later were able to track down Lam. She was arrested at her home in Avenida da Longevidade at noon last Wednesday and the HK$6,000 was found in her handbag. Lam admitted that she had pocketed the cash.
Lam has been transferred to the Public Prosecution Office (MP), facing a charge of misappropriating a lost item.
This undated handout photo provided by the Public Security Police (PSP) on Tuesday shows the suspect being escorted by a PSP officer to the Public Prosecution Office (MP) in Nape.
