Two schoolboys among six arrested over smash-and-grab robbery in Hong Kong jewellery shop
- The robbery occurred on Kau Yuk Road in Yuen Long on March 3, when a gang of masked men made off with HK$600,000 worth of gold ornaments
- The pair, aged 15 and 16, are Form One and Form Three students from two schools in the district, while at least two others are still at large
Two schoolboys were among six arrested over a smash-and-grab robbery in which HK$600,000 (US$77,400) worth of gold ornaments were stolen from a jewellery shop in northern Hong Kong about a month ago, police said on Thursday.
The pair, aged 15 and 16, are Form One and Form Three students from two schools in Yuen Long.
At least two other men were still at large, assistant Yuen Long district commander (crime) Superintendent Auyeung Siu-kong said, while refusing to reveal the two teenagers’ roles in the robbery.
Officers were also investigating whether the gang was linked to other criminal cases across the city.
The robbery occurred at about 11am on March 3 when a gang of several masked men jumped out of a car and rushed into the jewellery shop on Kau Yuk Road in Yuen Long.
Police said the gang members were carrying an axe, a hammer and a knife.
“They threatened staff at the shop with weapons before using the hammer to smash open the display cabinet,” Auyeung said.
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“They made off with HK$600,000 worth of gold ornaments in a minute.”
The gang fled in the same car, which was found abandoned in Nam Sang Wai at about 6pm the same day. It had been reported stolen in Tin Shui Wai earlier.
After scanning surveillance camera footage, police believed the gang was made up of eight or nine non-Chinese men.
On Tuesday, officers arrested six men, aged 15 to 48, in a series of raids in Yuen Long and Pat Heung. Three airguns and two knives were seized along with cash and a small quantity of illegal drugs.
Police said all six suspects were holders of Hong Kong identity cards, with five of Nepali origin and the sixth of Pakistani origin.
An investigation was continuing and further arrests were possible.
In the past three days, police arrested four boys aged 13 and 14, and a girl aged 15, in connection with a robbery in which a 51-year-old woman was punched and kicked, and robbed of her watch and handbag in Mong Kok on Monday night.
Between March 22 and 29, 15 students were among 60 people arrested in a police operation that targeted an uptick in youth crime in Tuen Mun.
