Commercial Crime Bureau (CCB) held a presentation ceremony at Police Headquarters on February 26 and presented letters of appreciation to representatives from a local bank and Government Laboratory for their support and assistance in smashing a cross-jurisdiction telephone deception syndicate.

Speaking at the ceremony, CCB Chief Superintendent (CSP) Wong Ying-wai pointed out that the support of the bank and Government Laboratory underscored the fact that close liaison and co-ordination were essential for the police in bringing criminals to justice.

CCB started "Operation WILDCRATER" in 2012 and discovered that a telephone deception syndicate had deceived victims in Taiwan by posing as law enforcement officials and alleging that the victims were involved in criminal activities. The victims were asked to prove their innocence by remitting money to bank accounts in Hong Kong.

As this syndicate was operating across several jurisdictions, a joint investigation started in conjunction with the Public Security Department of Guangdong Province, Macao Judicial Police and Taiwan Police. After two years' investigation, a joint operation was mounted in September 2014, resulting in the arrest of a total of 32 persons in the four jurisdictions. Seven persons were picked up in Hong Kong with $1.25 million in cash seized and were later convicted of offences of conspiracy to defraud and money laundering.