On December 18, a street robbery occurred in Sheung Wan, Hong Kong. Several armed robbers stole 1 billion Japanese Yen in cash, equivalent to nearly 50 million Hong Kong dollars, on the street. The police have arrested a mainland Chinese man holding a two-way permit, suspected to be related to the robbery.
According to the Hong Kong media “Wen Wei Po,” around 9 a.m. on the 18th, two men aged 39 and 51 respectively, along with their driver, arrived across the street from 181 Queen’s Road Central at New Century Plaza. They planned to go to a nearby HSBC Bank to exchange a total of 1 billion Japanese Yen for Hong Kong dollars. The three men got off the car carrying four suitcases filled with huge amounts of Japanese Yen cash. At that moment, three robbers suddenly approached, two of them wielding machetes, threatened and took away the four suitcases before swiftly jumping into a private car to escape. The victims immediately reported the incident to seek help. Fortunately, none of the victims were injured.
Earlier, media outlets such as “Dian News” reported that there were suspected to be four culprits involved in the case.
Upon receiving the report, the police rushed to the scene to conduct interceptions and searches. They apprehended a man outside the Sheung Wan MTR station holding suitcases filled with a large amount of Japanese Yen, suspected to be related to the case. After preliminary investigations, the 43-year-old mainland Chinese man holding a Hong Kong-Macau travel permit was arrested on suspicion of robbery, and was taken to the police station for further investigation.
Subsequently, the police discovered a suspicious vehicle believed to have been used by the culprits on nearby Soho Street. Forensic personnel arrived at the scene to collect evidence, including fingerprints from the driver’s seat and passenger seat, and found palm prints on the outside of the car door. Multiple detectives were present to assist in the investigation.
Currently, the case has been transferred to the Serious Crime Unit 1B of the Hong Kong Island Regional Crime Unit for further follow-up. It is reported that the incident involves a currency exchange store at New Century Plaza.
New Century Plaza, where the robbery took place, is located in a bustling area with many banks and commercial buildings nearby. Even during the afternoon’s less busy hours, there is still a considerable amount of pedestrian traffic.
Based on information, the largest denomination of Japanese Yen banknotes is 10,000 Yen, weighing approximately 1 gram per note, so 1 billion Japanese Yen in cash would weigh at least 100 kilograms. The currency exchange store involved in the case continued its operations in the afternoon of the 18th.