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Clifford Lo

Jun Mai

In an unprecedented joint operation, police from the mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan cracked two overseas-based syndicates operating phone scams and made 431 arrests.
One gang, set up in Indonesia, had allegedly duped Hongkongers out of HK$118 million in 431 cases this year, police sources said. The other syndicate operated in Cambodia and did not target Hong Kong.
Another racket that preys on Hongkongers is still believed to be operating in the Philippines.
"It will be our next target," said a source close to the operation.
Intelligence indicated all three gangs were headed by people from Taiwan.

The operation was coordinated by the mainland's Ministry of Public Security and involved officers working with their counterparts in regional countries. It came to light when 254 mainland suspects arrested in Indonesia and Cambodia last month were sent back to Beijing, Hangzhou , Shanghai and Guangzhou on chartered flights yesterday.
Xinhua said the Indonesia-based syndicate involved more than 3,000 reports of telephone scams in Hong Kong and the mainland.
Veteran soprano Li Yuanrong, 73, who was duped out of more than HK$20 million in Hong Kong, was one of the victims.
READ MORE: Phone scammers posing as mainland officials cheat Hong Kong victims out of HK$85 million in a month
Calling it the "biggest and most sophisticated telephone deception syndicate", the source said the gang set up its base in Indonesia, where 224 people from the mainland and Taiwan were arrested on October 19.
Guangdong police picked up a further 39 suspects.
Police from Hong Kong, the mainland and Taiwan are understood to have gone to Indonesia last month ahead of a series of raids on eight locations. But none of the victims' money had been recovered and no Hong Kong residents were arrested.

"The victims deposited money in different mainland bank accounts, which was then transferred to Taiwan," the source said. "Officers lost track of the money after it went to Taiwan. Police are still investigating how the gang laundered the money."
Police said the syndicate recruited mainlanders and Taiwanese to make scam calls from Indonesia. Members were given a script outlining their roles and what to say over the phone.
One call centre was set up in a luxury villa in the Indonesian city of Surabaya. New members were locked up, had their passports confiscated and were barred from using their phones, according to Thepaper.cn a Shanghai-based news website.
READ MORE: From street con-artists to phone fraud: A history of Hong Kong scams ... and how to avoid becoming another victim
"To avoid detection, the internet calls were made through many computer servers located in mainland China, Taiwan, the Philippines, Hong Kong and other Asian places," another source said. He said Hong Kong police were responsible for locating the call centres with overseas help and identifying the syndicate's key figures.

Xinhua said the gang in Cambodia was broken up when police raided three locations and arrested 168 people in a joint operation on October 29.
Some suspects portrayed themselves as victims, claiming they "felt pressure every day". They worked from 8am to 5pm and were forced to submit the details of 150 prospective victims each month, mainland police told Thepaper.cn The report said some gang members had been recruited with bogus job offers.
They were the first arrests since the State Council set up an inter-ministry task force in June to crack down on such crime.
In the past 10 months, fraudsters posing as mainland officials have duped Hongkongers out of HK$266 million in 1,255 cases. Victims are typically told they have broken mainland laws and have to prove their willingness to cooperate by transferring money to mainland bank accounts.
 


Hundreds arrested as police crack phone-scam gangs based overseas targeting Hong Kong, mainland China

Suspects are escorted off an aircraft by police at Hangzhou airport in  Zhejiang province. Photo: Xinhua

Fraud suspects arrested in Indonesia and Cambodia arrive back on the mainland. Others were caught in Guangdong. Photos: SCMP Pictures

Police in Indonesia with some of the suspects arrested. Photo: SCMP Pictures

Fraud suspects arrested in Indonesia and Cambodia arrive back on the mainland. Others were caught in Guangdong.Photo: Xinhua

A policeman examines some of the evidence collected in the case. Photo: Xinhua

Phone scammers posing as mainland officials cheat Hong Kong victims out of HK$85 million in a month

Police senior assistant commissioner Lau Yip-shing discusses the city's crime figures. Photo: Dickson Lee

Hong Kong Police Senior Assistant Commissioner Director of Crime and Security Lo Mung-hung attends Hong Kong Police press conference to review crime situation in the first half of 2015. Photo: Dickson Lee

Hong Kong Police Senior Assistant Commissioner Director of Operation Lau Yip-shing (left) and Senior Assistant Commissioner Director of Crime and Security Lo Mung-hung attend Hong Kong Police press conference to review crime situation in the first half of 2015, at the Police Public Relations Branch at Police Headquarters in Wan Chai. Photo: Dickson Lee

Phone scammers send Hong Kong victims’ cash to Malaysia, Taiwan and Macau as police ask Interpol for help

Phone scammers defrauded Hongkongers of HK$126 million last month. Photo: Thomas Yau

Scammers pose as mainland Chinese officials, including police. Photo: Xinhua

Some Hong Kong victims' money has been transferred to bank accounts in Malaysia. Photo: AFP

Phone scammers con elderly Hong Kong woman out of HK$3m by posing as mainland Chinese officials 

Phone scammers often pose as mainland Chinese officials, including police officers. Photo: Reuters

From street con-artists to phone fraud: A history of Hong Kong scams ... and how to avoid becoming another victim

Police escort a suspect in a phone scam case earlier this month. Photo: Sam Tsang

Don't transfer money to strangers’ bank accounts or place any cash in a public space. Photo: Stanley Shin

Use anti-virus software to scan attachments before opening them. Photo: AP

Call police if you think you need assistance. Photo: Sam Tsang

Phone scammers often pose as mainland Chinese officials, such as police. Photo: Xinhua

 Li Yuanrong lost HK$20 million in a telephone scam. Photo: SCMP Pictures 

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Hong Kong

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431 suspects arrested in Indonesia and Cambodia after unprecedented cooperation between officers from the mainland,Hong Kong and Taiwan


.css-sioo19{color:#c79a00;}Update | Hundreds arrested as police crack phone-scam gangs based overseas targeting Hong Kong, mainland China

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}431 suspects arrested in Indonesia and Cambodia after unprecedented cooperation between officers from the mainland,Hong Kong and Taiwan

Update | Hundreds arrested as police crack phone-scam gangs based overseas targeting Hong Kong, mainland China

431 suspects arrested in Indonesia and Cambodia after unprecedented cooperation between officers from the mainland,Hong Kong and Taiwan