Multi-property owner loses HK$10 million after fraudster poses as possible tenant

A woman in Hong Kong who owned multiple properties has lost HK$10 million (US$1.3 million) after being scammed by a fraudster posing as a prospective tenant.

The force revealed on Friday that the 64-year-old retiree, whose properties consisted of residential, commercial and parking spaces, was contacted via WhatsApp by a scammer in May in response to a rental listing she posted on Facebook.

Police said that while no tenancy agreement was signed, the con artist struck up a friendship with the woman and claimed they could teach her how to invest in cryptocurrency, framing it as “the next opportunity to get rich”.

The scammer gave the victim step-by-step instructions on how to set up a cryptocurrency wallet, but tricked her into revealing her wallet details and password, before persuading her to invest large sums of money.

The woman then spent about HK$10 million on cryptocurrencies, which the scammer then transferred out of her digital wallet.

She only realised the deception when she discovered her cryptocurrency wallet was empty.