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CASE 384  |  Unidentified businessmen  |  December 18, 2025  |  Hong Kong
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DATABASE RECORD
  id                  384
  date                December 18, 2025
  original_date       December 18, 2025
  year                2025
  month               12
  quarter             2025-Q4
  victim              Unidentified businessmen
  location            Sheung Wan
  country             Hong Kong
  scenario            Armed Robbery in Public Space
  description         Robbery outside a currency exchange, during which four suitcases containing 1 billion yen (US$6.4 million) were snatched within 30 seconds as part of a “meticulously planned” plot.
  kidnappings         0
  violence_torture    0
  drugs_alcohol       0
  weapons             1
  theft               1
  life_taken          0
  money_wanted        1 billion yen (US$6.4 million)
  coin_type           4 briefcases with cash
  reports             SCMP News
  notes               The robbery targeted two employees of a Japanese company specialising in cryptocurrency and luxury goods, who had planned to exchange 1 billion yen, or about HK$50 million, at the shop on Wing Lok Street in Sheung Wan. They used a beef knife to threaten the two employees.
  has_processed_date  0
  created_at          2025-12-23 21:45:34
  (flag legend: 'kidnappings' is the DETENTION flag — 1 when the victim was held against
   their will at any point, tied, locked in, held at gunpoint or taken away; it is NOT the
   same as the 'Kidnapping' scenario, which means taken away and held. See README, Definitions.)

AI SUMMARY  [generated at bulk import, NOT verified against sources]
  **Victim:** Two employees of Japanese company specializing in cryptocurrency and luxury goods
  
  **Attackers:** 15 suspects (11 men, 4 women, aged 20-69) - all local residents, several with triad backgrounds. Seven charged with conspiracy to commit robbery (six men, one woman). Most unemployed, some claimed to be casual construction workers.
  
  **Attack Method:** Meticulously planned ambush robbery on Thursday, December 19, 2025 at 9:00 AM outside currency exchange shop on Wing Lok Street, Sheung Wan. Syndicate conducted prior surveillance and set up strategic ambush. Three assailants jumped from private car when victims arrived. Entire robbery completed in 30 seconds.
  
  **Violence Used:** One assailant brandished 20cm (8-inch) beef knife to threaten employees. Police described operation as "violent" with high level of professional execution.
  
  **Crypto Stolen:** Four suitcases containing 1 billion yen (US$6.4 million / HK$50 million) intended for currency exchange. Cash snatched and loaded into getaway car. Suspects transferred suitcases to second backup vehicle with two accomplices waiting, then dumped first car on Jervois Street. Second vehicle (seven-seater) later found in New Territories.
  
  **Status:** All 15 suspects arrested December 22, 2025. Police believe all involved in robbery apprehended but not ruling out further arrests. Beef knife, used masks, and drinks recovered from abandoned car. Police actively tracing stolen funds, investigating whether syndicate knew exchange staff and how they learned of transaction. Cash not yet recovered.

LINKED SOURCES
  [url]  https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3337263/hong-kong-police-arrest-15-over-meticulously-planned-1-billion-yen-robbery
  [url_2]  https://archive.is/SOB70#selection-1145.40-1145.80

OTHER LINKED SOURCES
  [BLOCKED]  url_2  None — raw request refused; try the WebFetch path, which is a model transcription and must be labelled as such
      https://archive.is/SOB70#selection-1145.40-1145.80

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FETCHED ARTICLE 1
  Source     scmp.com
  URL        https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3337263/hong-kong-police-arrest-15-over-meticulously-planned-1-billion-yen-robbery
  Field      url
  Retrieved  2026-08-06T13:45:17+00:00 via raw HTTP retrieval, deterministic extraction (HTTP 200)
  Language   unknown
  Kept       paragraphs headline [0] + 4-9 of 11
  Length     1,294 chars
  Integrity  sha256 7103c5bb35f953bf1529eedca8d03b7de9b1319c030d808dfe8d8c6d9f0626cc
  Trimmed    trimmed on read-through
  Caveat     retrieved from a live page on the date above. Unlike text copied
             from the spreadsheet, there is no second copy to hash it against.
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ORIGINAL (unknown, verbatim as retrieved)

Hong Kong police arrest 15 over ‘meticulously planned’ 1 billion yen robbery | South China Morning Post

The headline has been updated to reflect that the arrests have been made in connection with the 1 billion yen robbery.

Hong Kong police have arrested 15 suspects in connection with a robbery outside a currency exchange, during which four suitcases containing 1 billion yen (US$6.3 million) were snatched within 30 seconds as part of a “meticulously planned” plot.

The force said on Monday that it was still trying to recover the cash, adding that the robbery targeted two employees of a Japanese company specialising in cryptocurrency and luxury goods, who had planned to exchange 1 billion yen, or about HK$50 million, at the shop on Wing Lok Street in Sheung Wan.

The pair were ambushed when they arrived at the shop at 9am on Thursday last week by three assailants who jumped out of a private car.

“One of them brandished a 20cm [8-inch] butcher knife and threatened the two employees, snatching the cash in the four suitcases and loading them into their car before fleeing the scene,” Superintendent Sin Kwok-ming said.

The 11 men and four women, aged 20 to 69, were arrested in connection with the robbery. All are local residents and several are known to have triad backgrounds.

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generated from attacks-export-Gart-website.json + reported_K&R  |  case 384
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