More Teens Being Recruited As Debt Collectors: Police

Police on Monday said they'd noted an increasing trend of gangs recruiting teenagers as illegal debt collectors – a situation that officers say has been made worse by school closures during the pandemic.

In the latest case, officers in Sha Tin said they had arrested 12 people, aged between 13 and 19, on suspicion of offences including conspiracy to commit criminal damage and possessing items with intent to destroy or damage property.

Some of them are suspected to have triad links, and the 19-year-old is believed to be the mastermind of the gang.

Chief inspector Lam Nga-sze said this is not an isolated incident, as officers had dealt with 217 similar cases in the first three months of 2022.

"Due to Covid-19, teenagers have more time to stay at home rather than go to school. So they have more time to hang out with their gangs or their friends. During this time, they are easily solicited by the triads or the youth gangs to involve in some of the illegal debt collecting activities," Lam said.

The force said investigations are ongoing and officers aren’t ruling out more arrests.