Robbers Take $450K From a Tether Trader During an In-Person Transaction in Hong Kong — Second Incident in 2021

Hong Kong police are investigating the second incident in the year involving an offline cryptocurrency transaction. A female trader is reportedly the latest victim of robbers who stole her HKD 3.5 million ($451,000) worth in tether (USDT) tokens.

One of the Robbers Gained Female’s Trust by Performing Three Successful Transactions

According to the South China Morning Post, thieves lured the female crypto trader to an office for arranging the deal. The incident took place at the Ricky Centre on Chong Yip Street in Kwun Tong, said the authorities.

Initially, the robber allegedly gained the female trader’s trust by successfully performing three transactions before the incident. The amount of money traded was in the range between HKD 600,000 ($77,400) to HKD 700,000 ($90,300).

At the time of the robbery, the woman agreed to deal with the same man. One police source told South China Morning Post:

Investigations showed she was paid HKD 3.5 million in cash after using her iPhone to complete an online transaction and sell him USDT tokens.

But right after the trade took place, three men carrying knives and rods jumped out from another room and took the money and the woman’s phone. Robbers didn’t flee from the scene without first locking the female crypto trader inside the office.

Police Are Still Looking for the Four Robbers

Police said the woman called her husband through her second phone, who then called the authorities. The investigation revealed that the criminals rented the office on a short-term lease.

No arrests have been made, while detectives from the Kwun Tong criminal investigation unit are in charge of the case. According to the woman’s uncle, who drove her to the building, four men fled from the scene in a delivery van. The female trader was found uninjured.

As news.Bitcoin.com reported on January 7, 2021, a 37-year-old man was a victim of a theft from a gang of robbers who fled with 15 bitcoin (BTC), worth HKD 3 million ($387,000) in cash. After the transaction, the robbers kicked the victim out of the car on a hillside while counting the money.