HONG KONG: Hong Kong police have arrested 31 people of a local syndicate that produced deepfake romance and investment scams to defraud victims in Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia, with criminal proceeds exceeding HK$34 million (US$4.37 million).
Police’s commercial crime bureau, which conducted the arrest operation on Thursday and Friday, said the syndicate had rented two premises in neighbouring industrial buildings in Kowloon Bay to conduct their swindles, which involved approaching victims with deepfaked images of good-looking women they found online.
Superintendent Fung Pui-kei said on Sunday that the two scam centres would run in two shifts as syndicate members recruited youngsters, including students, by promising them quick cash if they conducted the scams.
“New recruits would be trained to use different dating apps to fish for targets, who would usually be based in Taiwan or [Southeast] Asia, such as Singapore and Malaysia,” Fung said.
Victims would first be lured into developing a romantic relationship with a fake online persona, before scammers would ask them to invest in a sham virtual assets platform based overseas.
Police said the syndicate had generated HK$34 million in crime proceeds, but the number of victims and amount of individual losses were still being reviewed.
Scammers would operate under accounts designed to embody specific personas, usually a good-looking person who would flaunt their wealthy lifestyle with pictures of expensive cars and watches, as well as high-powered events in cryptocurrency investment circles.
Fung Padded that the syndicate made use of deepfake technology to build relationships online.
"They also make use of the new technology, like AI face-swapping technology, to [pretend] to be some good-looking ladies and gentlemen to induce potential victims, gain their trust and develop into romance relationships in order to commence the romance scams," he said.
Once gaining their trust, the syndicate persuaded people to send money to a fake investment platform, police said.
During the raids, officers seized HK$100 million worth of suspected criminal gains, including cash, handbags and luxury watches.
Most of those arrested said they were unemployed, while some were university students.
Officers said five of those held, among them core syndicate members, have been charged with conspiracy to defraud. They'll appear at Eastern Court on Monday.
The other suspects were released on bail.
Last October, the force took down a syndicate operating in a similar way, and police are trying to determine if the two cases were connected. - Agencies
