Cross-border syndicate forged Hong Kong ID cards for illegal workers

Hong Kong immigration authorities have arrested 97 people in a joint operation with mainland China targeting an identity card forgery syndicate that sent illegal workers to the city, with local officers disguising themselves as delivery workers to apprehend suspects.

Another 104 suspects were arrested on the mainland, according to authorities.

So Chun-ho, a senior principal immigration officer in enforcement at the Immigration Department, said on Thursday local authorities and officers from Guangdong province carried out the arrests in July and August.

“The syndicate would attract people with claims of earning big bucks in Hong Kong and provision of ‘one-stop shop’ services, such as producing fake identity cards, accommodation and guarantees of landing a job, to lure mainland residents to come work in Hong Kong,” So said.

So said authorities over the border first noticed the syndicate in May, as members would establish chat groups on mainland instant messaging apps seeking to recruit people who were willing to work illegally in Hong Kong. They each paid between 1,000 yuan (US$140) and 2,000 yuan to buy forged ID cards before coming to the city.

The syndicate would also deliver the cards to its members based in the city using courier services to avoid detection. The members then delivered the documents to the illegal workers.

“On the day of the operation, our investigators disguised themselves as delivery workers, launching a controlled delivery across various locations in the city at the same time, arresting the recipients of the parcels,” So said.