Man arrested over theft of HK$5,885 in foreign currency on Bangkok to Hong Kong flight

Hong Kong police have arrested a man on suspicion of stealing nearly HK$6,000 (US$765) in foreign currency while flying to the city from Thailand, with a passenger allegedly capturing the incident on camera and reporting it to cabin crew.

The force said the 57-year-old man was arrested for the alleged theft after the HK Express flight landed in the city shortly before midnight on Wednesday.

While police estimated the allegedly stolen foreign currency was worth about HK$6,000, a source put the amount at 25,000 baht, which is equivalent to HK$5,885.

The insider said the suspect had allegedly walked up from the back of the plane to open an overhead storage compartment at the front of the cabin.

“He was rummaging through a black bag, and took away cash from the bag, putting it into his pocket,” the source said.

The South China Morning Post learned that another passenger was believed to have witnessed the theft, filming it on his smartphone and alerting cabin crew.