Hong Kong should spare no effort in fight against financial crime
The recent crackdown by law enforcement agencies from 10 jurisdictions on international scams shows the benefit of regional cooperation
Hong Kong police worked with their counterparts from Brunei, Canada, Indonesia, Macau, Malaysia, the Maldives, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand. Together, some 3,200 officers carried out the operation in recent months, arresting more than 3,000 people in connection with 138,000 cases of mainly fraud and money laundering. These included online shopping scams, employment fraud, investment scams and telephone deception. Losses in the city were estimated at US$319 million, the highest of any jurisdiction.
The international crackdown came after the capture and extradition of alleged billionaire kingpin Chen Zhi by Cambodia to China in January. Mainland authorities have accused him of operating a pan-Asian crime network which engaged in fraud, forced sex work and illegal gambling. Many of his co-accused are Chinese nationals, just as many of his victims are, including actor Wang Xing.