Police recover HK$30 million in gold swapped for fabric softener in hotel theft

Hong Kong police have recovered about HK$30 million worth of stolen gold and arrested two men in connection with an elaborate hotel-room swap in which 30kg of gold granules were replaced with eight bottles of fabric softener.

The force said it received a report early on Wednesday from a mainland Chinese man who said about 30kg of gold granules, valued at roughly HK$30 million (US$3.8 million), were suspected to have been stolen from his luggage in a Kwun Tong hotel.

The gold had been replaced with eight similarly weighted bottles of fabric softener and a friend travelling with him in the same room had disappeared.

Police traced the suspects using the city’s surveillance camera network and soon identified all three men.

A man was arrested in Tai Po at noon on Wednesday, and officers found a room card for a hotel in the same district on him. They went to the hotel room and recovered all of the HK$30 million worth of gold involved in the case.

Another suspect was arrested while attempting to leave Hong Kong at the Lo Wu control point.

Chief Inspector Tang Tsz-hin, of the Kwun Tong police district, described the case as “meticulously planned”.

“The mastermind is the victim’s travelling companion, who is suspected of arranging for two other men to buy the fabric softener in advance and book an adjacent hotel room,” he said.

“When the victim briefly went downstairs for a cigarette, his friend opened the door to let the two men into the room to steal the gold,” Tang said. “The culprits managed to swap out 30kg of gold in just two minutes.”

The suspects used different modes of transport after the crime in an attempt to mislead the police investigation, police said.

Tang revealed the two male suspects, aged 27 and 41, are Chinese nationals holding two-way permits and are being held for inquiry.

The victim also came to Hong Kong on a two-way permit and mainly bought and sold gold at licensed institutions; the man travelling with him was a friend with whom he had worked for months.

Police said they believe the alleged mastermind had already left Hong Kong before the victim filed his report and are searching for him.

Under Hong Kong law, theft carries a maximum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment.