Tsim Sha Tsui Businessmen Robbed

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Chungking Mansions

In Tsim Sha Tsui, a region of Hong Kong, a group of business-people were tricked out of $1.5m HKD (~$191k USD). They had previously transacted with the trader for an even larger sum without issue. They were led to a room which was full of fake equipment and made their transfer. The trader then locked the front door and headed into the other room, pretending to talk to others in the room to prepare the funds but instead leaving through a back entrance. Police were called and ultimately managed to apprehend the suspect. It is unclear if any of the funds were recovered.

About Chungking Mansions Exchange Shop

Chungking Mansions is a building in Hong Kong that was originally intended for residential use but has become a hub for low-budget hotels, shops, and various services. It is known for its unique atmosphere, often compared to the former Kowloon Walled City. The building houses guesthouses, curry restaurants, African bistros, clothing shops, sari stores, and foreign exchange offices. It serves as a gathering place for diverse ethnic minorities in Hong Kong, including South Asians, Middle Eastern people, Nigerians, Europeans, Americans, and others. The complex has been unofficially referred to as the "African quarter of Hong Kong." Since its completion in 1961, the number of residents has grown to an estimated 4,000 people.

About Super Coin Cryptocurrency Exchange

The Super Coin cryptocurrency exchange, located in the Chungking Mansions shopping mall, No. 36 to 44 Nathan Road promoted itself through WhatsApp and Facebook. The particular location was leased starting in April 2022.

Super Coin Exchange Shop

🌟Welcome experts to transfer goods🌟

To thank new and old customers

Launched the Thanksgiving Feedback Activity Plan

USDT-7.75 price discount than everyone

The Super Coin cryptocurrency exchange had previously been used for an even larger trade successfully, in Tether (USDT) coins worth $4.5m HKD (~$573k USD). That trade had completed successfully without any issue.

"It is understood that the female staff had previously traded virtual currency with the scammer, and today’s transaction was only possible due to the successful completion of the previous transaction. The two parties originally traded Tether coins worth about 4.5 million Hong Kong dollars, but this round Choi first transferred the Tether coins worth about 1.5 million Hong Kong dollars to the buyer’s account, and the whole transaction was completed before the other party paid the full amount."

"the police received a report from a woman who said that she and her employer had met a buyer in “Super Coin” crypto currency exchange shop to trade bitcoins in the Chungking Mansions shopping mall, No. 36 to 44 Nathan Road earlier."

"A male businessman surnamed Choi (30 years old) who owns a company in Tsim Sha Tsui specialising in crypto currency trading, brought his male staff member (30 years old) and a female staff member surnamed Cheng (26 years old) to a crypto currency exchange shop in Chungking Mansions to trade Tether coins with a male buyer."

"At 1.11pm, the police received a report from a woman who said that she and her employer had met a buyer in “Super Coin” crypto currency exchange shop to trade bitcoins in the Chungking Mansions shopping mall, No. 36 to 44 Nathan Road earlier."

Include:

• Known history of when and how the service was started.
• What problems does the company or service claim to solve?
• What marketing materials were used by the firm or business?
• Audits performed, and excerpts that may have been included.
• Business registration documents shown (fake or legitimate).
• How were people recruited to participate?
• Public warnings and announcements prior to the event.

Don't Include:

• Any wording which directly states or implies that the business is/was illegitimate, or that a vulnerability existed.
• Anything that wasn't reasonably knowable at the time of the event.

There could be more than one section here. If the same platform is involved with multiple incidents, then it can be linked to a main article page.

The Reality

The location of the exchange had been "leased by a shell company for HK$4,000 (US$509) per month in April" (just a month prior). At the location, there was a cash register which was not connected to power and a computer which was an empty box.

This sections is included if a case involved deception or information that was unknown at the time. Examples include:

• When the service was actually started (if different than the "official story").
• Who actually ran a service and their own personal history.
• How the service was structured behind the scenes. (For example, there was no "trading bot".)
• Details of what audits reported and how vulnerabilities were missed during auditing.

“Inside the shop, the banknote counter was not connected to electricity. What looked like computers were just empty cases,” said Inspector Tong Sin-tung of the Yau Tsim criminal investigation unit on Wednesday."

What Happened

The specific events of the loss and how it came about. What actually happened to cause the loss and some of the events leading up to it.

According to the police, the suspect engaged in a face-to-face cryptocurrency transaction with the victim at a business establishment in Tsim Sha Tsui on May 4. After receiving the crypto transfer, the suspect fled through a side door, leaving the victim locked inside.

"[T]he victim transferred $HK1.5M (US$191,085) to an e-wallet." "The buyer later showed up, obtained the relevant virtual currency transaction link from the three people, and falsely claimed to go to the staff room of the exchange to get cash payment. He then locked the glass front door of the shop before entering the staff room."

"It is believed that someone deliberately committed the crime." "The suspect then exited the premises under the pretense that he would get cash for the victim." "The scammer claimed that when he entered the staff room to get money, he shouted “Please prepare cash in HK$1,000 banknotes!” pretending that there were other people in the staff room in order to reduce the victims’ suspicion."

"After the victim transferred the crypto to the suspect’s wallet, the suspect fled through a side door and locked the victim inside." "He falsely claimed that he needed to go to withdraw money, locked the victims in the shop and left the scene. The victims later realised that they had been deceived, and found that more than HK$1.5 million worth of crypto coins in their account had been transferred away so one of the staff members immediately called the police for help."

"The victim and her colleagues then discovered they were locked in and called the police, who tracked down the victim on Tuesday in Sham Shui Po in northern Kowloon."

Key Event Timeline - Tsim Sha Tsui Businessmen Robbed

Date	Event	Description
April 14th, 2022	Lease And Social Media Promotion	A shell company starts to lease the shop in Tsim Sha Tsui in April. Promotions for the Super Coin exchange start to appear on WhatsApp. It is also understood that the victim successfully swapped Tether (USDT) coins worth $4.5m HKD (~$573k USD) at some point prior to the incident in question.
May 3rd, 2022 11:11:00 PM MDT	Police Report Officially Received	The police officially receive the the report about the crime.
May 4th, 2022 12:53:00 AM MDT	DimSumDaily Article Published	The story is first picked up by Dimsum Daily, and international online English news blog.
May 10th, 2022 11:58:00 PM MDT	Hong Kong Police Post Video	Hong Kong Police posted a video where they address media about the incident.
May 11th, 2022 1:00:00 PM MDT	BeInCrypto Article Published	BeInCrypto publishes their article covering the events. This is copied to cryptocurrency news aggregator CryptoNews and copied with minor modifications by CryptoSaurus. While the article mentions being updated, the sections related to this event were unchanged.
May 11th, 2022 10:24:00 PM MDT	Forkast Reports Suspect Arrested	Asian news outlet Forkast reports that the 24-year-old suspect has been arrested by Hong Kong police for allegedly stealing HK$1.5 million (US$191,076) in cryptocurrencies through a physical cash-to-crypto transaction. The theft, considered a rare on-site cryptocurrency theft, is being treated as a serious crime that carries a potential 10-year prison sentence. According to the police, the suspect engaged in a face-to-face cryptocurrency transaction with the victim at a business establishment in Tsim Sha Tsui on May 4. After receiving the crypto transfer, the suspect fled through a side door, leaving the victim locked inside. The investigation is ongoing, and the police are looking into the possibility of accomplices and potential further arrests.the suspect was successfully arrested.

Technical Details

According to the police report, the transaction took place in a "Super Coin" cryptocurrency exchange shop. It appears that this location had been specially set up ahead of time to give the appearance of legitimacy, with fake computers and a cash register which was not hooked up to any power.

The victims made a transfer of cryptocurrency funds, which was intended to be exchanged for cash. However, the perpetrator did not provide any cash and instead locked them in the store.

"It is understood that the female staff had previously traded virtual currency with the scammer, and today’s transaction was only possible due to the successful completion of the previous transaction. The two parties originally traded Tether coins worth about 4.5 million Hong Kong dollars, but this round Choi first transferred the Tether coins worth about 1.5 million Hong Kong dollars to the buyer’s account, and the whole transaction was completed before the other party paid the full amount."

"[T]he victim transferred $HK1.5M (US$191,085) to an e-wallet." "The buyer later showed up, obtained the relevant virtual currency transaction link from the three people, and falsely claimed to go to the staff room of the exchange to get cash payment. He then locked the glass front door of the shop before entering the staff room."

"It is believed that someone deliberately committed the crime." "The suspect then exited the premises under the pretense that he would get cash for the victim." "The scammer claimed that when he entered the staff room to get money, he shouted “Please prepare cash in HK$1,000 banknotes!” pretending that there were other people in the staff room in order to reduce the victims’ suspicion."

"After the victim transferred the crypto to the suspect’s wallet, the suspect fled through a side door and locked the victim inside." "He falsely claimed that he needed to go to withdraw money, locked the victims in the shop and left the scene. The victims later realised that they had been deceived, and found that more than HK$1.5 million worth of crypto coins in their account had been transferred away so one of the staff members immediately called the police for help."

Total Amount Lost

The total amount lost has been estimated at $191,000 USD.

How much was lost and how was it calculated? If there are conflicting reports, which are accurate and where does the discrepancy lie?

Immediate Reactions

How did the various parties involved (firm, platform, management, and/or affected individual(s)) deal with the events? Were services shut down? Were announcements made? Were groups formed?

"Police officers blocked the currency exchange shop involved in the case, and checked the CCTV footage of the entrance and exit of the mall to track down the whereabouts of the suspect involved. The case is temporarily handed over to the Yau Tsim Police District Criminal Investigation Team for follow-up."

"Hong Kong police announced on Tuesday the arrest of a 24-year-old who is suspected of stealing HK$1.5 million (US$191,076) in cryptocurrencies in a physical cash-to-crypto transaction." "The police labeled the rare on-site cryptocurrency theft as a serious crime punishable by 10 years in prison, if convicted." "[The] 24-year-old man was arrested by Hong Kong police Tuesday for allegedly stealing [the] funds from a Hong Kong citizen, an offense punishable by up to ten years in prison."

Ultimate Outcome

What was the end result? Was any investigation done? Were any individuals prosecuted? Was there a lawsuit? Was any tracing done?

"Hong Kong police spokeswoman Tong Sin-tung said at a Wednesday press conference the suspect had a face-to-face cryptocurrency transaction with the victim at a business located in tourist hub Tsim Sha Tsui on May 4. "

"The police have not recovered any money but seized some of the suspect’s personal effects from the bogus shop, which had been rented under the name of a shell company."

"Tong said the police are seeking to determine if the suspect was working alone, adding that the ongoing investigation could result in further arrests."

Asian news outlet Forkast reports that the 24-year-old suspect has been arrested by Hong Kong police. The theft, considered a rare on-site cryptocurrency theft, is being treated as a serious crime that carries a potential 10-year prison sentence.

Total Amount Recovered

The total amount recovered is unknown.

Ongoing Developments

The investigation is ongoing, and the police are looking into the possibility of accomplices and potential further arrests.the suspect was successfully arrested. "Tong said the police are seeking to determine if the suspect was working alone, adding that the ongoing investigation could result in further arrests."

Individual Prevention Policies

The simplest way to avoid this situation is to be sure that you have physical visibility of the cash prior to authorizing any irreversible payment. Performing transactions in multiple stages or using an escrow agent to temporarily hold the funds can further the safety of such transactions.

When performing an in-person exchange, the risk level can be minimized by reducing the amount transferred at one time, performing the transfer in a more secure location, conducting the transaction with more individuals present, and retaining more identifying information about the counterparty. Having a large amount of cash in one area and improperly secured allows for theft to occur. Be sure that you have physical visibility of any cash to be received prior to authorizing any irreversible payment. Alternatives with lower risk of physical theft such as debit or eTransfer should also be considered.

For the full list of how to protect your funds as an individual, check our Prevention Policies for Individuals guide.

Platform Prevention Policies

This case does not appear to have resulted in a loss to any platform.

For the full list of how to protect your funds as a financial service, check our Prevention Policies for Platforms guide.

Regulatory Prevention Policies

Physical theft is best dealt with through traditional means. The rate of occurrence of physical theft can be reduced through providing effective exchange platforms and better education for individuals.

Create a standard tutorial and quiz for all new cryptocurrency participants, which is required to be completed once per participant. This tutorial and quiz should cover the basics of proper seed phrase protection, strong password generation, secure two-factor authentication, common fraud schemes, how to detect and guard against phishing attacks, how ponzi schemes work, as well as other risks which are unique to the cryptocurrency space.

For the full list of regulatory policies that can prevent loss, check our Prevention Policies for Regulators guide.