10-Year-Old Boy Among Hong Kong Watch Robbery Suspects, Skipped School For S$870
On Monday (11 Sep), three armed men burst into a luxury watch shop in Hong Kong and began robbing the place.
Smashing display cases with hammers, they made off with timepieces worth around HK$3.7 million (S$644,000).
Source: HK01
Thankfully, police swiftly recovered the watches.
They also caught the three suspects, one of which was a 10-year-old who purportedly skipped school to commit the crime.
Officers recently brought the 1.7m-tall boy back to the crime scene for a reconstruction.
Hong Kong robbery happened on 11 Sep
According to HK01, the heist took place on Monday (11 Sep) at around 3.40pm.
Three armed robbers stormed into a luxury watch shop called VIP Station in Tsim Sha Tsui.
Source: HK01
Wielding knives and sledgehammers, the masked men shattered the display cases in a smash-and-grab while threatening the staff.
Source: HK01
After taking 20 watches worth a total of around HK$3.7 million (S$644,000) in just 30 seconds, they fled into a seven-seater Toyota with fake licence plates.
A female shop employee suffered minor injuries during the robbery and was treated at a hospital.
One robber, a 19-year-old, switched out of the getaway vehicle into a taxi.
From there, he traveled to Kowloon Peak and buried the loot under a tree along Pak Fa Lam Road.
Source: HK01
About 1.5 hours after the robbery, police arrested him at Kowloon Peak and retrieved all 20 watches.
Later that day, the brother of the suspected getaway driver claimed to be unrelated to him.
Police arrested him on account of misleading them, though they currently do not believe he took part in the heist.
10-year-old arrested a day after Hong Kong robbery
Surprisingly, one of the armed robbers was just 10 years old.
He reportedly skipped school on Monday, wearing a jacket over his school uniform during the robbery itself.
After committing the crime, the boy, who stands at 1.7m tall, got onto the taxi with the 19-year-old before taking his jacket off and going home via bus.
Although he faked being at school, the school noticed the truancy and reported it to his parents.
Police officers apprehended him after school on Tuesday (12 Sep).
Source: HK01
The Standard reported that the boy participated in the robbery for a cut of just HK$5,000 (S$870).
That same day, the police found and searched the seven-seater getaway car, finding several additional weapons within.
Source: HK01
14-year-old boy arrested 2 days after robbery
Police traced the final armed robber to a guesthouse in Yuen Long on Wednesday (13 Sep).
They arrested the 14-year-old boy, who was also wearing his school uniform during the heist.
The Standard noted that he is a Form One student.
As for now, the getaway driver remains the final suspect at large.
On Wednesday, officers in plain clothes escorted the 10-year-old back to VIP Station for a crime scene reconstruction.
He walked with a black hood over his head to protect his identity.
Source: HK01
It is believed that he threatened the staff with a knife and participated in snatching up the watches.
Source: HK01
The South China Morning Post reported that he has been ordered to be detained in a juvenile home while investigations are underway.
A similar incident happened in Japan earlier this year when police apprehended four teens for an attempted watch heist in Tokyo.
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Featured image adapted from HK01.
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