Hong Kong police have arrested two people and seized more than 1,000 fake tickets with a face value of over HK$2 million (US$256,410) in total for concerts by Mandopop superstar Jay Chou this weekend.
The force said on Saturday that officers arrested a man, 23, and a 17-year-old girl during an operation the previous afternoon at Hung Hom MTR station when members of a local syndicate were allegedly making a deal. Two counterfeit tickets were seized from the pair.
Officers also found another 1,073 fake concert tickets with a face value of HK$1,880 each, or more than HK$2 million in total, in a hotel room in To Kwa Wan.
The pair were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud and possessing a false instrument and had been detained for investigation, the force said.
A preliminary investigation had revealed that the syndicate used hotel rooms to store fake concert tickets and arrange for their distribution, Chief Inspector To King-sang said.
The tickets all had the same serial number and were of poor quality, including roughly printed laser labels in the upper right corner, and had multiple errors in the sales terms on the back.
鈥淭he criminal group targeted users of well-known mainland Chinese social media platforms and took advantage of fans鈥 eagerness to grab tickets on the eve of the concerts to sell them fake ones,鈥 To said.
鈥淭his operation successfully prevented more than 1,000 fake concert tickets from entering the market. Imagine if fans had accidentally bought these tickets and were unable to enter the venue; it would not only spoil their fun, but also lead them to suffer financial losses.鈥
Taiwanese star Chou started his three-night run of shows on Friday at the 50,000-seat main stadium at Kai Tak Sports Park.
Earlier this month, police arrested eight suspects in a crackdown on a cross-border syndicate that allegedly sold fake concert tickets for a total of HK$650,000. A source said Chou鈥檚 shows were among those being exploited by the syndicate.
Police said the suspects, five men and three women, aged 20 to 44, were all Hong Kong residents. The force鈥檚 Kowloon East regional crime unit identified the syndicate behind the sale of the tickets after conducting an extensive investigation that involved citywide CCTV analysis.
Officers posed as buyers to apprehend the suspects. Those arrested included the group鈥檚 alleged mastermind, who largely lived on the mainland and allegedly had connections to printing facilities.