Hong Kong police recover credit card amid theft fears at fire-hit Tai Po estate

Hong Kong police have recovered a credit card suspected of misuse from a sealed flat damaged in the deadly blaze at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po. The incident follows residents' growing concerns about property safety after a recent burglary and arrests of construction workers. The card owner deactivated it promptly and avoided any financial loss.

Hong Kong police have recovered a credit card suspected of misuse from a sealed flat damaged in the deadly blaze at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po, as residents express growing concerns about property safety following a recent burglary. Wang Fuk Court is a public housing estate in Tai Po, New Territories, where a fatal fire occurred in November, leading to structural reinforcements and sealed units.

A source said on Monday that police received a report from a resident on Saturday, after she got a text message from her bank on January 5 requesting authorization for an online transaction. “She immediately deactivated the card, without incurring any monetary loss. She then reported the case to police as she feared her card had been misused,” the source said.

Police confirmed after investigation that the card had not been stolen, and officers later went to the woman’s flat where they found it. Tai Po’s crime squad is investigating the suspected transaction.

The estate had previously seen a burglary involving gold jewellery, with arrests of construction workers. Residents have voiced worries over security, prompting police to tighten measures, including increased patrols in affected areas. The November fire caused multiple casualties and resettlement arrangements. Police stress that no evidence of actual misuse has been found yet, but the probe continues to reassure residents.

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Hong Kong residents navigate fire-damaged ruins of Wang Fuk Court to retrieve cherished family items before farewell.
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Wang Fuk Court residents climb ruins to retrieve family treasures, bid farewell

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Residents of Hong Kong's Wang Fuk Court have returned to the fire-ravaged ruins in recent days, climbing stairs to retrieve jewellery, cash, photo albums and keepsakes before bidding farewell to their homes. The fire services chief acknowledged at a hearing that departments need better communication while insisting on clear divisions of responsibility. The blaze killed 168 people.

A resident of Hong Kong's fire-ravaged Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po reported that drawers and boxes in her flat appeared ransacked, prompting a police probe and rekindling burglary fears in the sealed complex. The incident came to light after a government social worker sent her a photo on Monday. Police inspected the flat on Tuesday morning.

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Residents Joe and Annie visited their flat at Wang Fuk Court for what they believed was the last time to collect belongings. Banks are replacing cash damaged in the November fire under measures from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority.

The administrator of the fire-damaged Wang Fuk Court estate has assured residents that the Hong Kong government will assume responsibility for insurance claims if owners accept the buy-back offer.

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An inquiry heard that a fire services company conducted no on-site checks and merely rubber-stamped 85 shutdown notices for a housing estate's hose reel system before Hong Kong's deadliest blaze in decades. A Fire Services Department official testified that another contractor failed to alert authorities after finding the estate's fire water tanks drained and power switches for hose reels and alarms turned off. The revelations emerged at the ninth hearing into the November fire in Tai Po that killed 168 people.

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