Singapore returns wanted man to HK police
Updated at 7.07pm: A 55-year-old man - wanted in connection with a theft case - was handed back to Hong Kong Police from Singapore on Thursday, a police spokesman said.
The man had acted as an agent of a victim of a scam involving the purchase of a sewing machine. The scam dated back to 1992. The wanted man had been authorised to withdraw and transfer funds from the victim's account.
But in early 1996, the victim had discovered that a total of US$852,000 (HK$6.6 million) was transferred from his bank account to the suspect's personal bank accounts without his knowledge, the spokesman said.
The wanted man was then found to have left for Singapore in February 1996.
'In April 1999, a request was made to Singapore for the arrest and extradition of the fugitive,' the spokesman said.
However, a subsequent investigation revealed that the fugitive had been travelling in and out of Singapore using different passports. 'Further investigations were conducted to clarify the identity of the fugitive and a formal request was made to extradite the fugitive in January 2005,'' he said.
On January 27, 2005 Singapore Police arrested the fugitive at Changi Airport. 'Arrangements were then made to hand back the fugitive to Hong Kong Police today,' added the spokesman.
The man was subsequently charged with three counts of theft. He will appear in the Eastern Magistrates' Courts on Friday.
