Crime | Local man assaulted and robbed in fake currency exchange scheme

A local resident was assaulted with pepper spray and tied up in a hotel room where he was threatened with a knife as he attempted to fulfill a currency exchange deal offered earlier by the aggressor, the Public Security Police Force (PSP) informed yesterday during the regular joint press conference of the police forces.
The incident occurred on December 21 around 5 p.m. in a hotel located at NAPE district. According to the report, the victim met the suspect through the mobile communication application WeChat and the suspect had offered to exchange currency in Hong Kong Dollar to Chinese yuan at a rate of RMB86 for each HKD100.
The victim agreed with the conditions of the deal and went to the suspect’s hotel room, at the arranged time, to perform the exchange.
Upon opening the door, the suspect sprayed pepper spray on the victim’s face and pulled him into the room. He grabbed the bag which had HKD118,200 in cash.
After that, he placed a knife to the victim’s neck so that the victim could not resist and tied him using plastic zip ties and a rope.While tied up inside the room, the victim attempted to negotiate with the attacker, saying that he had money and they could go to the casino located on the third floor of the same hotel and gamble without the need to hurt anyone.
The suspect agreed on the deal and brought the victim down to the gaming floor. Being near the casino security guards, the man called for help.
The suspect tried to flee but the casino security detained him and called the PSP, which took him for questioning.
The suspect, a 40-year-old tourist from the mainland holding a visa valid until December 24, confessed to the crimes.
In the bag possessed by the suspect, the officers found the cash belonging to the victim as well as two cans of pepper spray, one knife, a bundle of rope, five plastic zip ties prepared to be used as handcuffs, a pair of gloves and a roll of scotch tape. He also had 100 fake HKD100 banknotes in his possession.
He informed the police that he had acquired all the equipment through an online store.
He has been transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office to be charged for robbery and possession of forbidden weapons and explosive substances, according to Articles 204 and 262 of the Macau Penal Code.

Woman accuses man of sexual harassment, suspect claims memory loss

A 27-year-old local woman is accusing a 35-year-old man who works as a croupier in a local casino of sexually harassing her while she was walking on the street, the Public Security Police Force (PSP) reported yesterday.
In the report, the woman said that on December 28 at around 2 a.m., while she was walking on the street near the intersection between the Rua de Francisco Xavier Pereira and Avenida do Ouvidor Arriaga, the man crossed the sidewalk with her and patted her private parts. She also mentioned that the man had a strong odor of alcohol.
During the investigation, the PSP reviewed the CCTV footage of the area and was able to identify the suspect and gather evidence of him touching the woman.
On the same day, around 4:30 p.m. the PSP found the suspect at his friends’ house. At the same location, they also found the clothes which he wore when he touched the woman.
The suspect told the police that on the evening of December 27, he had been eating and drinking with his friends and he had drunk a lot of alcohol, claiming to not being able to recall the incident with the woman on the street.
The police spokesperson said that the force believes that there is strong evidence of the crime reported and has forwarded the case to the Public Prosecutions Office for further investigation regarding the sexual harassment charge. RM