Hong Kong’s police force budget boost unlocks creation of new bureau specialising in financial crimes investigation
- Number of investigators handling cases including money laundering, terrorist financing to double with new bureau’s creation
- Police also reveal three new 170-man tactical units will be part of new manpower boost
Hong Kong’s police force will soon have a dedicated bureau specialising in financial investigations, along with a doubling of the number of detectives qualified to handle them, as the city steps up an ongoing crackdown on money laundering and terrorist financing, the Post has learned.
A government source familiar with plans for the new Financial Intelligence and Investigation Bureau emphasised it had been in the works for more than a decade and was unrelated to the social unrest that had rocked the city since June.
The revelation follows the release of a new city budget that provides for a ramping up of force manpower by more than 7 per cent – its biggest boost in decades – with an extra 2,500 positions to cope with operational needs.
The source said the new bureau would be created as soon as the city’s legislature approved the government budget application announced on Wednesday.
He added that police needed additional resources to tackle transnational money laundering because of rapid developments in cryptocurrency and payment services, noting that numerous other crimes also require financial investigations.