Four Charged in Daylight HK Robbery of Japanese Yen

Summary: Hong Kong police charged three Japanese men and a mainland interpreter for a 51M yen heist. Victim was robbed outside an exchange shop. Four remanded in custody; two others released on bail.

Source: OT-Team(G), 南方都市报, 日テレNEWS NNN

Hong Kong police have formally charged four individuals with conspiracy to commit robbery following a brazen daylight heist in Sheung Wan last week, in which approximately 51 million Japanese yen (about HK$2.57 million) was stolen.

The case was first reported to police at 9:47 a.m. on January 30. A 51-year-old foreign male victim stated he was robbed of a backpack containing the cash by two men near a currency exchange shop on Des Voeux Road Central. The assailants, accompanied by a woman, then fled the scene in a vehicle.

Acting on investigation leads, officers arrested six individuals on the same day in operations at No. 1 Cheong Tian Road near the airport and on Nathan Road in Tsim Sha Tsui.

According to subsequent statements from the Hong Kong Police Force's Public Relations Branch, the arrested persons included three foreign men (aged 23, 27, and 28), a 53-year-old mainland Chinese woman surnamed Li, a 29-year-old mainland Chinese man surnamed Ng, and a 28-year-old local man. They were arrested on suspicion of "conspiracy to commit robbery" and "handling stolen goods."

On February 2, police announced that three of the foreign men and the 53-year-old mainland woman had been charged with one count of "conspiracy to commit robbery." Their case was presented at the Eastern Magistrates' Courts that morning. The remaining two individuals have been released on bail and are required to report back to police in early March.

Japanese media, reporting on the court proceedings, identified the three foreign men as Japanese nationals. They were named as Keigo Shimomura and Masato Yamaguchi, who are alleged to have carried out the robbery, and Yusuke Suzuki, who is suspected of providing logistical information to the group while ostensibly assisting the victim with transporting the cash. The fourth defendant charged is the 53-year-old mainland Chinese woman, identified as an interpreter.

During the initial hearing, bail was denied for the four charged individuals. The court ordered them remanded in custody, with the next hearing scheduled for April 14. The case continues to be investigated by the Hong Kong Island Regional Crime Unit.