Hong Kong police have used drones for the first time to combat illegal street gambling operations, arresting eight suspects over the past two weeks.
The eight suspects – seven men and a woman, aged between 53 and 76 – were arrested in Chung On Estate, police said on Sunday. Some HK$420 (US$54) in cash and gambling equipment were seized.
The arrests followed a joint operation, codenamed JusticePeak, conducted between April 5 and 18 by officers from the Sha Tin and Ma On Shan police divisions to crack down on street-level illegal gambling.
“For the first time, drones were deployed to patrol and identify various street gambling blackspots in the district,” the force said in a statement on Sunday.
The eight people were each charged with one count of “gambling in any place not being a gambling establishment or in a street”, according to police.
Police said they would continue to strengthen patrols and crack down on illegal gambling activities on the streets.