Hong Kong marks threefold increase in number of visitors arrested in first quarter, part of post-Covid trend

Hong Kong has recorded a threefold increase in the number of visitors arrested for various crimes in the city in the first three months of this year compared with the same period in 2022, following its reopening to the world amid eased Covid-19 curbs. Police figures reveal that 499 travellers were detained on suspicion of committing various offences in the city between January and March, three times more than the 165 visitors caught over the first quarter last year. More than half, or 266 of the 499 visitors arrested, were from mainland China, marking a sixfold increase from 37 in the same period last year. Local authorities arrested 266 visitors from the mainland throughout the whole of 2022, 251 in 2021 and 392 in 2020. The number of visitors from other countries arrested in connection with various crimes also rose by 82 per cent to 233 in the first three months of this year from 128 over the same period in 2022. The force did not provide any breakdown on the origins of these visitors. A force insider said the crimes included pickpocketing, shop theft, and theft of unattended valuables, adding that some female visitors from the mainland were also arrested for breaching their condition of stay in anti-vice operations. According to police, reports of theft rose by 45 per cent to 5,340 between January and March this year from 3,678 cases logged in the same period last year. The surge in the number of theft cases earlier sparked a warning from the city’s Japanese consulate reminding its nationals to remain vigilant, keep an eye on their belongings and avoid using smartphones or listening to music while walking on the streets. Hong Kong police arrest woman, 53, over theft of jade pieces worth HK$9.5 million The police source said the surge in the number of visitors arrested for various offences was expected as travel returned to normal and arrivals had gradually increased, following the end of pandemic restrictions. He added an average of about 400 mainland visitors were arrested for various offences in each quarter of 2018 and 2019. A police spokesman said the number of visitors arrested for committing crimes in the first quarter this year had increased but remained lower than the same period in 2019’s pre-pandemic levels. “Police will closely monitor the trend and take appropriate actions in a timely manner, including strengthening patrols in all areas, conducting targeted intelligence-led operations and promoting crime prevention,” the spokesman said. All border crossings between Hong Kong and the mainland have reopened, while a quota system and Covid-19 tests for travellers were also dropped in early February. 190,000 cross Hong Kong-mainland border on first day of full reopening Immigration Department statistics showed a total of 3.35 million visitors from the mainland crossed the border between January and March, while 1.05 million visitors from other countries or Taiwan entered Hong Kong. The numbers are in stark contrast to the same period in 2022, during which Covid-related curbs were in force, with only 7,807 mainlanders visiting and 2,082 travellers arriving from overseas places or Taiwan. Hong Kong scrapped mandatory quarantine for international arrivals on December 14, 2022, making it one of the last places in the world to remove stringent Covid-19 control measures for visitors. In the first quarter of this year, there was a spate of thefts in which Mandarin-speaking women lured elderly men with the promise of massages or sex to steal valuables such as luxury watches and gold necklaces. In February, there were at least nine such cases, with most of the victims being elderly men. Three incidents were reported in Sham Shui Po, while the others were in New Territories districts. Crime crackdown for Hong Kong ‘golden week’ influx of mainland Chinese tourists On February 22, police arrested a couple from the mainland on suspicion of stealing HK$3,000 (US$383) from an elderly man after he was lured to a subdivided flat in Sham Shui Po with the promise of sex. In addition to theft offences, some mainland visitors were also caught begging on the streets of Hong Kong in February. Police arrested two elderly visitors from the mainland on February 21 on suspicion of playing the erhu, a Chinese string instrument, and collecting money from passers-by in Causeway Bay. The 66-year-old man and 73-year-old woman were later charged with begging in a public place. Within that week, two men with disabilities from the mainland, aged 38 and 51, were also taken into custody on suspicion of begging. Since the lifting of travel restrictions in the city, authorities have also noticed an increase in drug-trafficking syndicates using couriers to mingle with air travellers in an attempt to evade customs detection and move narcotics into the city. Between May 8 and 14, customs seized more than HK$10 million worth of cocaine and arrested five travellers from Brazil at Hong Kong International Airport. In the first four months of this year, nine inbound travellers were detained and 5.8kg (12.8lbs) of illegal drugs seized at the airport. Additional reporting by Oscar Liu