33 held in crackdown on credit card theft ring targeting Hongkongers in Shenzhen

Hong Kong and mainland Chinese police have arrested 33 people in a joint operation to crack down on a suspected credit card theft syndicate targeting city residents who travel across the border for leisure, with losses exceeding HK$1.8 million (US$229,500).

Superintendent Tsang Chun-kit of police’s crime Kowloon East Regional Headquarters said the syndicate had allegedly stolen Hongkongers’ credit cards in Shenzhen, and then immediately brought those cards back to the city to make purchases for resale as profit.

“All victims had been to tourist hotspots in Shenzhen for leisure before the crime happened. They didn’t check their personal belongings after the trip until banks notified them of abnormally large transaction records,” Tsang said.

The superintendent added that the Kowloon East regional technology and financial crime unit had exchanged intelligence with Shenzhen’s public security bureau and conducted an in-depth investigation before the agencies took separate enforcement action.