Hong Kong’s Security Bureau sends task force to help residents trapped in Southeast Asia

City authorities warned that kidnappers had recently changed tactics, pretending to arrange for victims to take goods to Japan or Taiwan before changing destinations at the last minute.

They have come under renewed pressure to ensure the return of Hong Kong residents believed to be held captive following the rescue of mainland Chinese actor Wang Xing, who had been kidnapped along the Thai-Myanmar border.

Hong Kong law enforcement had received 28 requests for help from residents believed to have been trapped in Southeast Asian countries and unable to leave from the second quarter of 2024 to January 14, the Security Bureau said.

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Some of the remaining cases, aged 21 to 43, involved reports of restrictions to freedom of movement, but the victims said they remained safe and able to communicate with their families or the task force.

Undersecretary for Security Michael Cheuk Hau-yip, who is heading up the six-member group, said the Thai government was very concerned.

“We have been in contact with the relevant authorities all along. Given the latest developments, we aim to communicate with them in person, understand the situation and then seek feasible ways of getting assistance from them,” he said before the task force set off.

“I hope that we can ensure the safe return of all Hong Kong people. This is our ultimate goal.”

Cheuk also noted that scam syndicates behind the kidnappings had changed tactics, going from promising lucrative bogus jobs to instead arranging victims to transport goods.

“They ask you to ‘take goods’ to Taiwan, Japan or other places. But, at the last moment, they say the destination has been changed to somewhere in Southeast Asia,” he said.

The undersecretary for security also said most victims already had established contact with perpetrators, including receiving electronic flight tickets, before leaving.

“Currently, none of the victims informed us that they were unexpectedly abducted while travelling in Thailand or other Southeast Asian locations. Most individuals were picked up as part of prearranged circumstances,” he said.

Former district councillor Andy Yu Tak-po, who has helped family members of kidnapped Hong Kong residents, said he had received many pleas for assistance.

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One relative accompanying Yu, who only identified herself as Mary, said she had only received a 30-second call since her loved one went missing for “a job” 2½ months ago and she hoped the task force would be able to save those being held.

“[I am] very emotional but truly overjoyed. We have always felt very hopeless about things, but now we can see a glimmer of hope,” she said, holding back tears.

Yu said he had noticed a change in tactics by scam syndicates.

“Now they entice victims by hiring them as purchasing agents in Japan and Taiwan, which is a very common job for a lot of content creators, thinking it is just a normal job,” he said.

“But the catch is that they arrange for victims to work in Thailand for a period of time through ‘intermediaries’ in Hong Kong, who assist in booking overnight flight tickets and travel with the victims to Thailand. After that, the victims go missing.”

Yu urged authorities to adopt similar measures to Taiwan, where officials urged potential victims against travelling to Southeast Asia, while also identifying intermediaries who often accompanied people on flights.