Hong Kong man ‘arrested 7 times in 4 months after selling bank account to criminal gang’

A Hong Kong man was arrested seven times in four months in connection with deception cases after he allegedly sold his bank account for HK$2,000 (US$255) which was then used to collect scammed money and launder crime proceeds, a police source revealed on Friday.

Officers from the Tseung Kwan O criminal investigation unit made the latest arrest last week after an investigation suggested the man’s bank account was linked to a case of investment fraud, the source familiar with the case said.

The suspect, who is in his twenties, was detained on suspicion of money laundering and obtaining property by deception.

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The source said the man had also been arrested by officers from other police districts in connection with six deception cases in the first three months of this year.

“The suspect received a single payment to sell his bank account details to a criminal gang who passed it to other syndicates and then his account was used to collect scammed money and launder crime proceeds in different cases,” he said.

The man was granted bail in the previous six cases before he was arrested again on Tuesday last week.

In the latest arrest, he was among 34 local residents rounded up by police between April 9 and Friday in connection with 28 deception cases in which scammers bilked HK$12.8 million.

Inspector Law Kwan-kit of the Tseung Kwan O criminal investigation unit said the cases involved phone, shopping and job scams, as well as investment fraud.

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He said a phone scam resulted in the largest cash loss among the 28 cases as the victim in the incident was swindled out of more than HK$4.5 million.

The arrest operation, code-named “Swiftpower”, was prompted by a 75 per cent rise in the number of technology crime and deception cases reported to the Tseung Kwan O police district in the first three months of this year.

Police in the area handled 605 cases between January and March this year. There were 346 incidents in the district in the same period last year.

According to the force, most of the 34 suspects were holders of bank accounts that were used to handle crime proceeds in the 28 deception cases.

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The inspector said the suspects claimed they were offered a monetary reward for selling their bank account details when they responded to adverts posted online by criminals.

“The investigation showed the suspects were paid hundreds to thousands of dollars each to sell their bank accounts that were used to collect scammed money and launder crime proceeds,” Law said.

He urged residents not to lend or sell their bank accounts to others for handling money from unknown sources, warning that those who did could be prosecuted for money laundering.

During the 13-day operation, police seized nine mobile phones, a computer, bank cards and related documents.

All of the 34 suspects were released on bail, pending further investigation. Police said further arrests were possible.

In Hong Kong, money laundering is punishable by up to 14 years in jail and a HK$5 million fine.

Official figures show police last year handled 27,923 deception cases of all types where people were swindled out of a total of HK$4.8 billion.