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Manhunt underway after 4 men kidnapped Hong Kong cryptocurrency investor and attacked husband with stun gun
Hong Kong police have launched a manhunt for at least four men who kidnapped a cryptocurrency investor and attacked her husband with a stun gun after intercepting their car in a rural village.
The woman, 55, was freed about an hour after being put into the seven-seater car in Tai Lau Leng village, near Po Shek Wu Road in Sheung Shui, at around 8.45pm on Tuesday, according to forces of the order.
A source close to the case said Wednesday that preliminary investigations suggested a financial dispute over a 15 million Hong Kong dollar ($1.9 million) currency investment was behind the city’s second kidnapping in 32 hours virtual event in which the victim was involved.
A source close to the case says preliminary investigations suggest a financial dispute over a 15 million Hong Kong dollar investment in virtual currency was behind the kidnapping. Photo: Shutterstock
The woman works as a cryptocurrency investor and her husband, 43, owns an IT company, the Post has learned.
Another source said that after the couple’s car was intercepted, four men jumped out of the vehicle and dragged the woman out. Her husband was attacked with a stun gun after trying to intervene.
He added that the woman was then pushed into the kidnappers’ vehicle which sped away before the police were called.
Officers were sent to the scene after receiving a tip-off from her husband.
About an hour later, the woman was released in Ta Kwu Ling, about 7km from the crime scene, the source revealed.
According to law enforcement, the woman went to Tai Kwu Ling Police Station to ask for help around 9.45pm.
Police said investigations showed that the victim did not know the four kidnappers, who were believed to be aged between 30 and 50.
The woman suffered minor injuries to her arm and leg, while her husband suffered injuries to his head, neck and limbs. They were sent to North District Hospital for treatment.
Police are treating the case as unlawful detention and assault.
Detectives from the Tai Po District Crime Squad are investigating the case. No arrests have been made so far.
On Monday, police rescued a 47-year-old woman in Ma On Shan about six hours after she was bundled into a car by two men in the bustling Tsim Sha Tsui shopping district around midday.
Police arrested two men aged 34 and 39 and a 53-year-old woman in connection with the case within 12 hours of the abduction.
Inspector Chan Kwan-to of the Yau Tsim District Crime Squad said on Tuesday that the case was linked to a financial dispute between the victim and the 34-year-old man involving HK$100,000.
He said the kidnapping occurred about six hours before the 39-year-old suspect attempted to use joss sticks and candles to burn the wooden door of the victim’s house, but in vain.
Police handled 10,122 reports of violent crime last year, up 14.6% from the 8,830 cases recorded in 2022.