Macau pair arrested for spreading false typhoon death rumours
Brother and sister spread messages online claiming that five people had been killed in a car park in the casino hub, and that authorities were covering up the deaths
The 73-year-old businessman and his jobless sister, 68, were arrested in a flat in Areia Preta on Monday after they allegedly disseminated false information through a mobile messaging application. The messages claimed that five bodies, including a family of four killed inside a car, were recovered in a flooded car park in Fai Chi Kei, according to a spokeswoman for Macau Judiciary Police.
Macau clean-up operation after deadly storm will still take days
The pair were also said to have claimed that the authorities were covering up the news and barring the media from accessing it, according to the spokeswoman.
The pair also urged recipients to spread their claims.
The woman told police she had received the message from an online chat room on Saturday and spread it the next day. Police were tracing the source of the rumour and urged the public not to distribute the message further.
Fai Chi Kei was one of the worst hit areas when Typhoon Hato swept through the gaming hub on Wednesday. Ten people were killed including four who drowned in underground car parks.