Hong Kong police have appealed to the public to return millions of
dollars taken after a van transporting HK$525m (£44m, $68m) crashed on a
major road.
About HK$35m (£3m, $4.5m) worth of banknotes were left strewn across the
tarmac after the road accident.
Witnesses said dozens of people rushed to pocket the cash before armed
police arrived to secure the area.
Some HK$20m was retrieved and police warned that failure to return the
rest would be "a very serious crime".
The incident happened at lunchtime on Wednesday on one of Hong Kong's
busiest roads in the Wan Chai district on Hong Kong Island, causing
major disruption as people abandoned their cars to collect the notes.
Individual notes were seen spread across the carriageway but witnesses
also reported seeing bundles of HK$500 notes wrapped in plastic.
One witness said that she saw a "regular looking Hong Kong lady" take at
least 10 bundles before leaving the scene.
"She had an armful of bricks of cash - it was as much as she could carry. She just disappeared into the depths of Wan Chai," the witness said.
Speaking shortly afterwards, police superintendent Wan Siu-hong called
on those who had picked up any money to hand it over to police as soon
as possible.
"If he or she keeps the money for [their] own use, [they] may commit an offense of theft which is a very serious crime under ordinance," he
said.
He said police had launched an inquiry into the cause of the accident,
adding that they "cannot rule out any possibilities at this moment".
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