Mainland China's police asked to help after Hong Kong jewel heist involving girl, 12

[PressToTeleport]

Mainland China's police asked to help after Hong Kong jewel heist involving girl, 12

PUBLISHED : Monday, 26 January, 2015, 11:31pm
UPDATED : Monday, 26 January, 2015, 11:31pm

Clifford Lo [email protected]

The Emperor Jeweller in Tsim Sha Tsui's 1881 Heritage mall. Photo: SCMP Pictures

Police will ask mainland authorities to help identify a gang who used an innocent-looking girl to steal a HK$36 million diamond necklace from a jewellery store last week.

Detectives have been placed at border checkpoints in the hope of spotting the Putonghua-speaking gang.

Friday's heist saw two women and a man distract staff at Emperor Jeweller in Tsim Sha Tsui's 1881 Heritage mall by asking to look at items on one side of the shop. The girl, aged about 12 to 14, calmly picked up a master key behind the counter and took the necklace from a display cabinet.

"We are investigating whether the gang had inside information on where the master key was hidden," the source said.

Investigations indicated that the gang had an accomplice who met the girl after she walked out of the shop with the necklace in the pocket of her windbreaker.

"CCTV footage also showed the man had visited the shop on January 18," the source said. Yau Tsim Mong district crime squad is poring over more than 200 CCTV tapes to work out their escape route.

"Officers from the police tactical unit are being deployed to check budget hotels and guest houses frequented by mainland visitors," the source said. "Uniformed officers are also asked to look out for the thieves."

No arrests have been made.

The source said the stolen necklace was embedded with more than 40 diamonds totalling 117 carats. "The biggest diamond is nearly 10 carats. It is the most expensive item in the shop."

Police will send CCTV images of the gang to mainland authorities through the force's liaison bureau. "We will ask them to trace them if intelligence shows they have fled to the mainland."

The adults, said to be well-dressed, asked staff to show them items on one side of the room.

"On the other side of the shop, the girl took a key hanging outside a drawer behind the counter, opened the drawer to steal the master key and then unlocked a display cabinet to steal the necklace," another police source said. "Her action took one or two minutes. CCTV footage showed she was calm at the time. We believe she had been trained and instructed in what to steal."

After leaving the store, CCTV footage showed the group walking along Canton Road towards Yau Ma Tei, but the trail was lost near the junction with Haiphong Road.