Two Indonesian men who deceived six of their compatriots — who work as domestic helpers — out of over HKD30,000 in cash and valuables have been jailed for three years each.
Defendants Romlan and Effendi, aged 41 and 32, were sentenced at the District Court today after they pleaded guilty to six joint counts of fraud, which bears a maximum penalty of 14 years’ imprisonment.
The pair came to Hong Kong on November 30 and went to Wan Chai, Causeway Bay, and Sham Shui Po, asking domestic helpers for directions, Oriental Daily reports. After striking up conversations with the women, who were all Indonesian, the scammers would then show them some marbles or gemstones, which they claimed were “magic” and could be used for spiritual rituals.
Often, the pair would approach their victim separately and pretend not to know each other, SCMP reports. Romlan and Effendi told their victims they could “bless” them with good luck and health, and asked the women to provide valuables such as cash, jewelry, smartphones, bank cards, and wallets for the ritual, claiming that more valuables would make the blessings more effective.
The men would order their unwitting victims to purchase a drink or item to help complete the ritual, then leave with the valuables.
One woman was told that she would be treated better by her boss, and another duped into believing that her mole could be removed with a particular charmed bar of soap. All six women, who were in their 20s to 40s, were scammed within 10 days. Some lost cash of up to HKD6,000 which is more than an entire month’s wages for domestic workers.
After realizing they’d been scammed, the women managed to track down Romlan and Effendi’s location with the help of the local Indonesian community and reported them to the police. Upon searching their residence, officers found some of the stolen items and arrested the men.
During mitigation, the defense argued that both men had no previous criminal records and had pleaded guilty. Romlan, a father of five, earned a monthly salary of IDR3 million (HKD1,800) as a security guard in his home country, while Effendi said he was struggling to provide for his family.
Judge Timothy Casewell said the defendants’ crimes were serious, given the rate at which they were committed, and sentenced them each to three years’ imprisonment.
