Hong Kong charity says 20 per cent of scam victims have suicidal thoughts
- Caritas Family Support Centre has logged 25.5 scam cases a month on average recently, and says blaming the victims only makes matters worse
- ‘Even a small amount of money can be a lifetime savings for most of them,’ says Caritas senior social work supervisor Gary Ng
A Hong Kong charity has revealed that one-fifth of more than 150 scam victims who sought emotional support from its staff over the past six months had suicidal thoughts, as it appealed the public not to blame the victims of cons.
The Caritas Family Support Centre on Sunday also echoed earlier police warnings over an increase in the number of scams, saying it had recorded 153 cases between April and September, for an average of 25.5 per cases a month. On average, the charity had received a case a day over the past three months.
Social workers have determined that about 20 per cent of the victims had suicidal thoughts, Caritas said.
The total losses for all cases totalled HK$117.9 million (US$15 million) an average of about HK$900,000 per victim, with one resident cheated out of HK$11 million, the organisation added.
Almost one-third of the 153 cases involved debt restructuring scams, and swindles concerning investment, online dating and job-seeking accounted for 25 per cent, 15 per cent and 10 per cent respectively.
“Putting the amount they lost aside, we also need to focus more on the stress level of those victims. Even a small amount of money can be a lifetime savings for most of them,” said Gary Ng Tsz-lok, a senior social work supervisor at Caritas.
