Man fakes buying gold to rob Tainan jewelry store; arrested by police in Kaohsiung

(CNA Reporter Chang Jung-hsiang, Tainan, 17th) A 48-year-old man surnamed Lai recently rode a scooter to a jewelry store in Yongkang District, Tainan, pretending to buy gold. Taking advantage of the store clerk's inattention, he snatched four gold necklaces and then fled to Kaohsiung, pawning three of them. Police arrested him yesterday and transferred him to prosecutors today on robbery charges.

The Yongkang Precinct of the Tainan City Police Department told a CNA reporter today that Lai rode his scooter to a jewelry store on Dawan Road, Yongkang District, on the evening of the 14th, pretending to buy gold. When the clerk turned around, he snatched four gold necklaces weighing over 7 taels and worth over NT$1 million, and fled on his scooter.

After fleeing the scene, Lai first abandoned his scooter in Xinshi District and took a train back to Kaohsiung. The police, after finding the scooter and identifying Lai, arrested him yesterday afternoon at a video arcade in Sanmin District, Kaohsiung, recovering the remaining gold jewelry and about NT$430,000 in stolen cash.

Initial police investigations revealed that Lai owed millions of NT dollars in debt and was in desperate need of money, leading him to take the risk of riding his scooter from Kaohsiung to Tainan to commit the robbery. The police will continue to investigate whether Lai had any accomplices. (Editor: Li Shu-hua) 1150417