A resident of Wang Fuk Court destroyed by fire Tai Po’s apartment building has reported a suspected burglary to authorities after photos taken inside her apartment showed obvious signs of a ransack.
The resident, surnamed Lee, told HKFP on Tuesday that her younger sister received three photographs of their upstairs flat in Wang Cheong House from the government social worker assigned to help the family on Monday.
Lee said her sister’s room appeared to have been ransacked and boxes used to store money and jewelry had also been opened, leading to suspicions that their apartment had been ransacked.
The photos, first seen by HKFP, appeared to show several open drawers and boxes.
After she and her family filed a police report on Monday, officers went to their apartment to investigate the next morning and found “most of the money” left in their home, she told HKFP.
However, she said she did not rule out that other valuables could be missing.
“Because it’s pretty chaotic inside the apartment right now, we’ll have to personally assess the loss the day we get home,” Lee said.
Wang Cheong’s house was the first building in Wang Fuk Court to catch fire on November 26. The fire engulfed seven of the eight blocks in the government-subsidized housing complex, killing 168 people and displacing thousands.
Authorities have cordoned off all eight blocks since the tragedy due to extensive damage and potential security risks.
Starting next week, residents of the seven buildings affected by the fire will be allowed to return to their homes to collect personal belongings. under strict government agreementsincluding a limit of three hours per visit.
Lee said her family was scheduled to return on April 28.
Police told HKFP on Tuesday that Tai Po district officers found money and jewelery inside the flat earlier that day and the family had carried out an inventory of the property.
Three construction workers have been arrested last month on suspicion of stealing HK$90,000 worth of jewelery from a unit in Wang Tai House, the block that had the highest number of casualties, while reinforcement work was being carried out.
The arrests prompted authorities to increase security, including body checks on workers and more frequent inspections of blocks.
