Police are hunting three South Asian men who robbed a female money exchange shop owner in Kowloon’s Mong Kok on Monday.
At 1 am, three South Asian men wearing face masks intercepted a 57-year-old woman as she was walking to the Metropark Hotel Kowloon and snatched her handbag before running away, the Oriental Daily reported.
She tried to chase the three but lost her balance and fell on the street. She then reported the theft to police. She said she lost HK$200 (US$25) in cash and two mobile phones, which were inside her handbag. She was sent to a hospital for treatment.
The woman is the owner of a money exchange shop on the ground floor of Golden Plaza on Nathan Road and planned to take a taxi home after closing the business. Her money exchange shop is near the cross-boundary coach terminal to mainland China and it usually closes late at night.
It was suspected that the gang planned the robbery as they thought the owner would carry a large amount of cash when she left the shop. The crime investigating unit of Mong Kok Police Station is following up the case. They are looking into surveillance camera footage from nearby shops.
Meanwhile, a 69-year-old Hong Kong woman lost HK$50,000 in cash when she discovered her bag had been opened while she was queuing up for a bank service in Tsuen Wan, the New Territories.
The woman called police and said she suspected two South Asian men standing behind her stole her money. She said the two men ran away when she shouted for help.