Hong Kong: Senior woman cheated on the phone for the equivalent of 26.6 million euros

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Hong Kong Skyline: Port of Billionaires

Photo: VINCENT YU / AP

In Hong Kong, a wealthy elderly woman was cheated on the phone for the equivalent of 26.6 million euros.

The fraudsters pretended to be Chinese officials and persuaded the old lady to make a total of eleven transfers within five months, the Hong Kong police said on Tuesday.

Alleged Chinese security officers contacted the woman last summer, reported the South China Morning Post.

They told the resident of a villa in a posh Hong Kong neighborhood that her identity had been used in a serious criminal case in China.

Now your money has to be placed in a safe place in a bank account you named.

The fraud was only noticed when a domestic servant suspected the old lady and contacted her daughter.

Following an investigation, a 19-year-old was arrested for fraud and released on bail.

Hong Kong is one of the metropolises with the most billionaires in the world.

Many of the well-heeled are of an advanced age.

According to the authorities, in the first quarter of 2021 alone, the number of phone frauds increased by 18 percent.

According to the local police, there were 1193 cases last year, in which a total of 61.5 million euros were stolen.

ala / AFP