Hong Kong police arrest 21 in crackdown on illegal valet parking service in popular shopping district
- Suspects used plastic chairs or traffic cones to occupy roadside metered parking spaces and forced car owners to pay for illegal valet service
- Officers seized about HK$50,000 in cash, account books and walkie-talkies from their possession
Hong Kong police have arrested 21 people suspected of controlling public parking spaces on more than 10 streets and forcing drivers to pay for their illegal car jockeying service in a popular shopping and entertainment district.
The suspects used plastic chairs or traffic cones to occupy roadside metered parking spaces in Tsim Sha Tsui and Yau Ma Tei, according to Chief Inspector Tong Kam-wai of the Yau Tsim police district.
He said they used criminal intimidation and extortion tactics to force drivers to pay for their illegal valet parking service.
“Those who refused to pay were banned from driving into these parking spaces and ordered to drive away,” he said.
A police source said some drivers were warned their vehicles would be “unsafe” to park there without using their service.
“They charged drivers as much as HK$50 [US$6] an hour in a busy area at peak times,” he said. In urban areas, the parking fee at a public facility is HK$8 an hour.
He said the accused often worked in one area during lunchtime and moved to another site at night.
