Police say man, 52, was transporting items when white car collided with his vehicle in Sheung Shui and gang of four robbers attacked him and stole valuable metal. Driver pursued gang despite suffering head injuries, recovering backpack containing 10 containers holding 10kg of powdered substance believed to be rhodium. — SCMP
An injured delivery driver in Hong Kong managed to recover about HK$12mil (RM7.28mil or US$1.5mil) worth of suspected rhodium powder, the world’s most valuable metal, after he was ambushed by a gang of robbers in Sheung Shui on Tuesday.
Police said the 52-year-old man was transporting the valuable cargo when a white car on Tin Ping Road, outside the Woodland Crest residential estate, suddenly accelerated and collided with the delivery vehicle at around 5.30pm.
A gang of four masked men with knives and metallic pipes rushed out of the car and attacked the driver, before grabbing a backpack containing 10 containers holding 10kg (22lbs) of a powdered substance believed to be rhodium, they said.
The group abandoned their vehicle and left the scene on foot, with the delivery man pursuing them despite sustaining head injuries.
The gang then discarded the stolen items during the pursuit.
The robbery was captured on a dash camera, which shows one of the robbers fleeing the scene with the items.
Paramedics arrived shortly after the incident and brought the delivery driver to North District Hospital for treatment.
The New Territories North regional crime unit is investigating the case.
Rhodium is a rare element from the platinum group that exhibits exceptional resistance to corrosion and has a melting point of 1,963°C (3,565°F), the highest among all metals.
It is commonly used as a catalytic converter in vehicles to reduce toxic emissions, as well as the production of high-end jewellery, laboratory equipment and electrical components.
The price of rhodium currently exceeds US$155,000 (RM734,622) per kilogramme, making it the most expensive metal in the world. – South China Morning Post
