Beware of ‘Octopus card top-up thieves’, netizen warns

Tai Po residents were reminded to be aware of “Octopus card top-up thieves” after a netizen almost lost HK$500 in a bizarre encounter.

The netizen shared the encounter online on Tuesday, recounting the moment he was attempting to add value to his Octopus card at a convenience store in Tai Po.

The netizen noted that after handing the cashier HK$500, with the cashier about to process the transaction, an elderly man suddenly lunged forward and placed his Octopus card on the card reader, aiming to “swipe away” the HK$500 top-up value.

Fortunately, the cashier had not yet processed the transaction when the elderly man placed his card on the reader.

The netizen said he was in a rush so he did not escalate the incident. Yet he noted a man had immediately approached to intervene after the elderly man was busted, prompting speculations that the man was an accomplice.

After the post went viral, netizens also shared similar encounters.

One of them said she had to block an elderly man from placing his Octopus card on the reader the moment she saw him lunging forward.

“I questioned the elderly man and he simply replied he wanted to check the balance on his Octopus card. Everyone, please be careful!” The comment read.