Gangs of thieves target luggage of passengers taking airport buses in Hong Kong
‘Many, many’ people have fallen victim over the past few weeks and there is growing concern over the problem, senior police source tells Post
Airline passengers are facing a fresh crime threat – and this time it is not from so-called in-flight steals – but the theft of travel bags and their contents from city-bound airport buses.
Police feared a wave of publicity over mid-air robberies – which saw more than HK$13 million worth of passenger property and cash pilfered from overhead luggage compartments on inbound flights between 2015 and 2016 – may have forced organised gangs to switch their attention to airport buses. The criminals banked on the fact that passengers who landed safely with their property intact would drop their guard.
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The new twist in airport-related crime had seen “many, many” passengers fall victim over recent weeks, according to police sources, and prompted fresh warnings to bus commuters travelling to or from the airport to be extra vigilant.
The police’s public relations bureau would only formally confirm two cases brought to its attention by the Post, insisting that the problem could not be formally quantified because it “did not maintain the requested figures”.
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However, a senior police source said there was growing concern over the problem.