Police have warned residents in several housing estates that scammers may send an unrecognized parcel to their residence and then seek compensation if they find the parcel has been broken.
Many housing estates and estate management companies received a notice from the crime prevention bureau about deception by a fake courier, Sing Pao Daily reported.
The estates included Taikoo Shing on Hong Kong Island, Wo Ming Court in Tseung Kwan O, Chevalier Garden in Ma On Shan and Fu Heng Estate in Tai Po in the New Territories.
Police said they received reports from citizens that they had received an unknown parcel from a courier company. When they opened the parcel they found a low-cost toy or decorative items inside.
People claiming to be “courier” staff asked the receiver to sign for the parcel and leave personal information including their phone number.
Later, they received a call from the “courier company”, claiming the parcel was wrongly delivered and requesting several thousand dollars in compensation for items inside which were broken.
However, the “courier company” does not exist – and the scam is just a ploy to get money.
Police reminded residents and domestic workers to beware of this ruse to avoid being cheated out of money. In 2014, there were eight cases of parcel scams at Beverly Garden in Tseung Kwan O.