Man Cons Two Sisters Out Of $470,000 Pretending To Be Successful Interior Designer

Married dock worker Chu Tak-fai has been found guilty of conning his online date and her sister out of HK$3.67m.
Tak-fai met Sin Lai-shan on dating platform Badoo in March 2016, and told her that he was a successful interior designer named Thomas Fung who worked in Harbour City in Hong Kong.
He told Lai-shan that “his monthly bonuses were about HK$200,000 to HK$300,000”, she explained.
Tak-fai later told Lai-shan that he needed money in order to replace stolen company funds and also persuaded her to invest in the business – he said an investment would make her a huge amount of money in just a few months.
She also provided Tak-fai with a cash sum of HK$85,000, after he allegedly lost his wallet and bank account details.
Lai-shan is said to have asked her sister for help to provide him with some of the funds, and reports have said that the conman also persuaded Lai-shan’s sister to invest in his company.
The pair lost a combined total of HK$3.67m (around $470,000) and Tak-fai is said to have spent the money on repaying personal loans, a new Mercedes, Rolex watches, designer bags and expensive jewellery.
Judge Johnny Chan Jong-herng said in court that both women were “simple and unworldly” and said: “It was not surprising that they fell for his claims.”
Tak-fai, who admitted to the crimes against Lai-shan on his arrest, has now been found guilty of five counts of fraud.