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Hong Kong Bitcoin Millionaire Arrested after Throwing Cash off Apartment Building

Last Updated March 17, 2023 1:38 AM
Guest Writer
Last Updated March 17, 2023 1:38 AM

The man, who was identified as Wong Ching Kit (with aliases such as “Mr. Coin” and “Coin Master”) is the owner of Coin’s Group and Epoch Cryptocurrency, a Facebook page that provides promotions for cryptocurrencies and miners. Kit is said to be a crypto enthusiast who made a large percentage of his fortune in last year’s cryptocurrency boom.

A Facebook Live Video which captured the occurrence showed the crowd rushing to catch HK$100 ($13) notes as they rained down from a building in the Fuk Wa neighborhood, one of the countries most impoverished areas. Kit is said to have been raising awareness for an upcoming event, choosing to take a somewhat unconventional approach to market.

While he was tossing the bills from the top of the building, the video recorded Kit telling bystanders:

“Today, December 15, is FCC’s big day in announcing the trading race. I hope everyone here will pay attention to this important event… [I] don’t know whether any of you will believe money can fall from the sky.”

Although it still remains unclear who- or what- he referred to as the FCC in his declaration, a Facebook video  was released shortly after the stunt where he declared that he was similar to the fictional character Robin Hood, telling anyone who cares to listen that he was “robbing the rich to give to the poor.”. The “Coin Master” also claimed that he felt it was his responsibility to teach the world about Bitcoin.

a group of people standing in front of a tall building
Image from the Facebook video.

His “charitable” action triggered a mass reaction, as passersby began to scamper in a bid to catch the bills that were falling from the air.

The police claimed that he was arrested on charges of “disorderly conduct in a public place,” and they have also urged members of the public who were beneficiaries of his lawlessness to return the bills to where they got them. Luk Wai-hung, a local attorney, argued that while his motives for raising advertisement were understandable, his approach was the reason why he was arrested.

He said, “How did he do his promotion? He wanted to create chaos to do it.” He also added that the maximum penalty for his offense is a 12-month prison term and a fine of HK$5,000. Innocent bystanders at the location attested to the total amount of money that was thrown away could be millions, although the police reported that they were only able to recover HK$5,000 (the equivalent of $639) from the streets.

Featured image from Shutterstock.