A citywide manhunt is underway for three robbers who made off with HK$24 million (over US$3 million) in a brazen smash-and-go jewelry heist in Kowloon’s Tsim Sha Tsui on Tuesday.
At 10am, two men wearing long-sleeved shirts, masks and hats used hammers to smash the display window of the Chow Sang Sang jewelry shop on the ground floor of Silvercord on Canton Road in Tsim Sha Tsui, Oriental Daily reported.
The raiders grabbed nine pieces of jewelry, ranging in value from HK$900,000 to HK$10 million, and escaped on a blue Suzuki motorcycle ridden by a third man wearing a helmet.
The three thieves drove along Canton Road and turned toward Salisbury Road.
The heist only took 20 seconds and was witnessed by many passersby. No one was hurt.
The three men were described as South Asian, a police source was quoted as saying.
The motorcycle, which was previously reported stolen, was later found abandoned in Yau Ma Tei at 5pm.
Police also received a report in the evening that a piece of jewelry worth HK$1 million was found in Kowloon Park. It is understood that it could be one of the stolen items, Wen Wei Po reported.
The heist occurred shortly after staff at the shop put the jewelry on display, as the shop opens at 10:30am.