Former Hong Kong football captain Lee Wai-man was robbed of HKD8.2 million in gold bars and foreign currency yesterday evening at a Hung Hom mall.
The 43-year-old was at Fortune Metropolis shopping center last night and bought 24 gold bars worth HKD7.5 million, Oriental Daily reports. While he was walking towards the mall’s main exit at about 9pm, Lee was approached by a man who grabbed his suitcase containing the gold and JPY10 million (HKD700,000) in cash.
Lee claims that when he attempted to get the suitcase back, two other men intimidated him with a knife. The assailants then jumped into a van that was waiting in the mall’s driveway and sped off. Police suspect that six to seven men were involved in the robbery, all of whom are reportedly of South Asian descent.
Lee reported the case to the police, who searched the area around the shopping center until about 4am, but found no suspects. The 43-year-old sustained minor injuries to his face but did not require medical treatment.
At around 11pm, police officers found a car matching the van’s licence plate in Kowloon Tong, but determined that it was not the getaway vehicle after preliminary investigations. Police told reporters they believed the thieves had used a fake licence plate to carry out the crime.
An investigation by the Kowloon West regional crime unit is underway.
EDITOR’S NOTE: A previous version of this article misstated the amount of yen stolen. We regret the error.
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