Thirty-nine people were arrested this week on suspicion of staging traffic accidents to try to defraud the government out of money granted to injured victims, police said on Friday. The suspects, aged between 19 and 48, are suspected of making false claims worth a total of HK$2 million in relation to 33 allegedly fake accidents. "Earlier this year, an internal audit by the Social Welfare Department found fraudsters using falsified documents to apply for the Traffic Accident Victims Assistance Scheme," Senior Inspector Lam Tsz-lim said at a press briefing. "Police investigations found some of these claims were linked to an organisation which orchestrates staged traffic accidents. One such incident involved 13 people." Lam noted that 275 people were arrested last month over suspicious claims under the scheme worth a total of HK$14 million. The police said money was not paid out in relation to most of the suspicious claims connected to the latest arrests. The Social Welfare Department said it verifies every application stringently and is carrying out more random checks on medical certificates submitted by applicants. "If false medical information, fraudulence or other criminal elements are suspected, the SWD will refer the case to the police for investigation and recover the overpaid assistance payments from the relevant applicants," a spokesperson said in a statement. The department also warned that people convicted of providing false information to obtain money from the accident victims scheme risk a jail term of up to 14 years.
