4 arrested in Hong Kong after victims lose HK$1 million in ‘blessing scams’
Scammers approached elderly victims on streets and took them to see ‘miracle doctor’ to perform rituals, police say
Hong Kong police have arrested four “blessing scammers” for allegedly cheating elderly women out of HK$1 million after approaching them on the streets and outside clinics.
Police detained four women on Tuesday in connection with six cases of spiritual blessing scams, including three illegal immigrants, aged 44 to 68, Superintendent Iu Wing-kan said.
One suspect, a local woman, 62, was arrested for allegedly aiding and abetting illegal immigrants by providing shelter for the other three.
All four women had been detained for investigation, Iu, from the New Territories South regional headquarters, said on Wednesday.
Iu said the suspects were allegedly involved in at least six roadside scam cases, amounting to HK$1 million in total, with individual sums ranging from HK$50,000 to HK$280,000.
The cases were reported between August and this month and involved female victims aged 67 to 81 in public housing estates in the northern New Territories and eastern Kowloon.
