An unusual case of attempted blackmail was revealed by Hong Kong police on Aug. 4, after photoshopped pornographic images of over 50 Hong Kong and Macau officials were sent to them, along with threats of exposure and demands for payment.
Investigators with the Organized Crime and Triad Bureau were able to trace the letters to several cities in Guangdong, China.
On the same day, Macau police also confirmed that 14 male and one female ministry-level officials had received threatening letters similar to those sent to the above-mentioned Hong Kong officials.
Mr. Lo Wai-chung, director of the Crime & Security Department of the Hong Kong Police, said most of the 50 are male, and that the initial police investigation revealed that fabricated photos had been enclosed in the letters.
The letters were discovered to have been sent from Guangdong, and inside were blackmail demands ranging from US$30,000 to US$75,000. Lo said the Hong Kong police would conduct a joint investigation with the appropriate mainland authorities.
Macau was also hit, with police there saying that the blackmailed officials had received threatening letters from major cities in Guangdong Province, including Zhuhai, Shunde and Zhongshan. The letters claimed that they had evidence of the officials’ corruption and bribery and included the photoshopped pornographic photos.
Blackmail payments of about US$60,000 were demanded from each of the threatened officials, or else their supposed lewd acts would be posted online and reported to the Commission Against Corruption. A Macau police spokesperson named Xu said that 13 male bureau officials and one female bureau official had received the letters.
Xu believes that more officials will be receiving similar threats.
Having reported the case to government agents, Macau police sent investigators to Guangdong for further investigation. Guangdong borders Hong Kong and Macau to the south.
It’s unclear what specific methods the blackmailers used to fabricate the images, and Hong Kong media did not elaborate.
Read the original Chinese article.
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Blackmail by Forged Pornography Traced to Mainland China
An unusual case of attempted blackmail was revealed by Hong Kong police on Aug. 4, after photoshopped pornographic images of over 50 Hong Kong and Macau officials were sent to them.
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