Hong Kong love scammers con 99 men of HK$20 million, including doctor, teacher, engineer
Police arrest 11 in crackdown on suspected fraud syndicate, warn that ‘significant number of men’ fell victim to love scams in August
Hong Kong police have arrested 11 alleged members of a fraud syndicate that stole HK$20 million (US$2.8 million) through online love scams from 99 men, including well-educated professionals such as a doctor, an engineer and a teacher.
The force said on Tuesday a “significant number of men” had fallen victim to love scammers last month, and urged people to be cautious when meeting new friends online, especially if “the conversation involves money”.
Senior Inspector Sung Ka-wai of the police’s cybersecurity and technology crime bureau noted that while most people assumed victims in online romance scams were women, data from last month showed men made up a significant 35 per cent of the total.
“This shows that swindlers target both men and women, and their tactics are diverse. Even well-educated professionals can fall victim to online romance scammers,” he said.
On Monday, officers arrested 11 people in a crackdown on a local fraud syndicate that swindled 99 Hong Kong men, aged from 21 to 44, out of more than HK$20 million in online romance scams in the past nine months.
“The victim’s ages range from 21 to 44, with most of them having a high school education or above. They include professionals such as a surveyor, an engineer, a teacher and a doctor,” Sung said.