Cross-border prostitution racket, Hong Kong vice ring smashed in joint operation

A cross-border prostitution syndicate using a dedicated website to advertise sex workers across Hong Kong, Macau and mainland China has been dismantled in a joint police operation, with authorities blocking the transfer of about HK$1.2 million (US$154,300) in illicit funds and warning of possible further arrests.

Police said a three-day crackdown from Monday to Wednesday on a cross-border criminal operation and a local triad-controlled prostitution ring had led to the arrest of 160 people in Hong Kong, Macau and on the mainland.

Chief Inspector Tang Hoi-tung of the organised crime and triad bureau said 66 of the arrests, involving nine men and 57 women aged between 22 and 55, were made by local police for offences including controlling others for prostitution, money laundering and breaching conditions of stay.

Tang said the cross-border operation – code-named “Sever Kite” – was a coordinated effort with mainland and Macau law enforcement agencies, while the local crackdown – code-named “Blue Mist” – targeted a triad-controlled vice ring in Kowloon City.

“Hong Kong police, after intelligence exchanges with the mainland and Macau law enforcement agencies, as well as follow-up investigations, discovered a criminal group active across the three places that, in May this year, built a website to advertise prostitution services,” Tang said.

She added that police also managed to block the transfer of about HK$1.2 million in illicit funds during the operation.

The website served as an advertising hub, charging operators and individual sex workers around 200 yuan (US$28) for a seven-day listing, with agents in each jurisdiction handling the fees, according to Tang.