A surge in mobile phone theft has given the police chief a headache, despite Hong Kong now being safer than a decade ago.
Police Commissioner Dick Lee Ming-kwai said the number of crimes in the first half of the year dropped by 7.5 per cent on the same period last year, when the annual crime figure rose to an eight-year high.
But while the city can take comfort from a drop in serious offences, police face a a surge in petty crimes, including mobile phone theft.
'The mobile phone problem is our biggest headache ... you can make a few hundred dollars in the second-hand market,' Mr Lee said.
'There has been a sharp rise in the number of mobile phones stolen over the past one to two years.'
He said that while police could step up patrols in pickpocketing black spots, there was a limit to enforcement action, as many of the thefts happened in areas not patrolled, such as in restaurants or on public transport.
'Say you leave your mobile on a table in a fast-food shop while reading the newspaper or go and get a packet of sugar, the handset could be stolen,' Mr Lee said.
