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Japan’s consulate in Hong Kong has warned nationals to be wary of pickpockets. Photo: Elson Li

Beware of pickpockets in Hong Kong, city’s Japanese consulate tells nationals

  • Japanese nationals told to guard belongings and avoid using smartphones or listening to music while travelling in city
  • Consulate says two nationals robbed earlier this year in Tsim Sha Tsui

The Japanese consulate in Hong Kong has urged its nationals to remain vigilant amid a sharp rise in the number of theft cases in the city, including pickpocketing after at least two of the country’s citizens were robbed earlier this year.

The consulate on Thursday revealed both instances had occurred in Tsim Sha Tsui, a shopping district which is popular with tourists. According to a notice on its website, one of the victims had their bag stolen by someone in a passing car.

Japanese nationals were advised to keep an eye on their belongings at all times, store valuables such as wallets and passports separately, as well as avoid using smartphones or listening to music while walking in the city.

Hong Kong police said they did not maintain statistics on how many theft cases affected foreign nationals, but they would continue to deploy resources against street-level crime such as theft. The force asked the public and visitors to file police reports if they noticed suspicious people or vehicles.

Hong Kong police search for robbers behind HK$760,000 theft at upscale flat

The consulate previously issued a warning notice in February, telling Japanese nationals to be wary following a rise in fraud cases last year.

In December it also issued a warning containing health advice amid a period of cold weather and increasing coronavirus cases, as well as a separate one telling nationals to take care during the 85th anniversary of the Nanking massacre.

China estimates that more than 300,000 died over a six-week period at the hands of the invading Imperial Japanese Army in December 1937, in the city now known as Nanjing.

The most recent warning was issued as official figures showed the number of theft cases in Hong Kong had spiked by 37 per cent, with 3,341 reports, over the first two months of the year, compared with 2,442 cases logged during the same period in 2022.

Hong Kong theft cases spike 40 per cent in first 2 months of year, force says

According to police, the number of pickpocketing incidents had increased by 96 per cent from 26 to 51 over the same period.

In March, the force’s Chief Inspector Choi Wing-yuk attributed the surge in theft cases to an overall increase in business and social activities resulting from the city’s reopening and post-pandemic recovery.

Official figures also showed a considerable drop in theft cases over the past decade, with the number of crimes logged shrinking from 33,664 in 2012 to 18,256 in 2022. Instances of pickpocketing also dropped from 1,540 to just 185.

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