Man who ‘ran into cars to claim personal injury compensation’ arrested in Hong Kong

A man accused of running in front of cars to fake injury and try to scam compensation from Hong Kong drivers was in police custody on Tuesday night.

The alleged two-year campaign involved staged accidents in Yau Ma Tei, Mong Kok and Sham Shui Po, according to police.

Chief Inspector Canise Lui Suet-kei of the Sham Shui Po police district said officers were investigating whether the 41-year-old was linked with similar cases.

He was arrested after the most recent known case, in which a man was accused of running suddenly into the road and throwing himself in front of a car in the district on December 8.

“When a motorist was driving a car along Cheung Sha Wan Road, a male passer-by suddenly rushed out from the pavement and rammed toward the front of the vehicle,” Lui said. “He had a dispute with the driver, who left the car to check what happened.”

She said the man immediately ran off when the driver called police. She said that as the driver tried to give chase a woman arrived to stop the motorist.

After two days of investigations, the two suspects were nabbed in Sham Shui Po on December 10.

Police arrested them for attempted deception. They were later released on bail pending further investigation.

But, Lui said, investigations showed the man was linked to three other cases in the Kowloon West region since January 2017, all of which failed to net him any money.

He was arrested again, and was still being held on Tuesday.

In the additional cases, the three drivers were asked to pay a few hundred Hong Kong dollars as compensation, Lui said.

“When the three drivers refused to compensate and called police, the man claimed he was unhurt and did not require hospital treatment, and then left the scene,” the chief inspector said.

She said there was no evidence of any fraud syndicate behind the scam.

Police appealed for witnesses and any other victims to contact officers on 3661 8885.