크리스마스 이브에 ‘눈’ 대신 ‘돈 벼락’ Christmas Eve ‘miracle’: Money rain in Hong Kong prompts sprint for ‘free’ cash (VIDEO)
source rt.com
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‘하늘에서 돈이 내린다면…’ 크리스마스 이브인 24일 홍콩 시내에 눈 대신 돈 벼락이 내렸다. 이날 오후 1시께 홍콩 시내 완차이 지역에서 뒷문을 제대로 잠그지 않은 채 운행하던 현금 수송 차량에서 현금 상자가 도로변에 떨어졌다. 완차이 지역은 차기 홍콩 행정장관 완전 자유 직선제를 요구하는 시위대가 70여일 동안 ‘우산 혁명’을 벌였던 곳이다. 떨어진 현금 상자에서 나온 500~1000 홍콩달러 지폐들은 눈처럼 흩날리며 도로를 뒤덮었다. 이를 본 운전자들과 행인들은 돈 다발을 주으려 몰려들어 일대가 잠시 혼란에 빠졌다. 일부 사람들은 현금 뭉치를 벽돌처럼 묶어 가져가기도 했다. 누리꾼들은 “성탄절 횡재”라고 글을 올렸다.
24일 오후 홍콩 시내에서 500~1000
홍콩달러 지폐들이 눈처럼 흩날리고 있다.
사진 명보 캡처
홍콩 경찰당국은 “현금 수송 차량에서 쏟아져 나온 지폐가 1532만 홍콩달러(21억7700만원)에 이른다”고 밝혔다. 홍콩 경찰은 무장 경찰을 출동시키는 소동 끝에 현장을 정리했다. 당국은 “현금 수송 차량에서 나온 현금을 주워 쓰는 사람은 절도 혐의가 적용돼 최고 10년 형을 받을 수 있다”며 시민들에게 자발적으로 돈을 돌려 줄 것을 권고했다. 현금을 수송한 영국 보안업체 G4S 쪽은 “경찰이 사건 경위를 알려준 뒤에야 차량에서 문제가 생겼다는 것을 알았다”며 “관련자들을 불러 사고에 고의성이 있었는지 조사하고 있다”고 말했다. 홍콩 <명보>는 “24일 밤까지 13명의 시민들이 360여만 홍콩달러 가량을 자발적으로 경찰에 돌려줬지만 여전히 1160만 달러는 회수되지 않았다”고 보도했다. 한겨레뉴스 베이징/성연철 특파원 sychee@hani.co.kr, 사진 홍콩 <명보> |
Christmas Eve ‘miracle’:
Money rain in Hong Kong prompts sprint for ‘free’
cash
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Hong Kong commuters were splashed with thousands of dollars worth of cash in the city’s financial district on Christmas Eve, after a cash transport vehicle's faulty backdoor made it rain money on the road. Bystanders sprinted to the scene to pick it up. Unsuspecting drivers and passersby had their share of Christmas magic, as an estimated sum of 35 million Hong Kong dollars (US$4.5 million) spilled on the highway on Wednesday afternoon, South China Morning Post reported. The security van transporting the cash contained a total of HK$525 million (over $67 million), according to police. Media reports said the van had a faulty rear gate, which led to piles of money falling out. Following the incident, motorists and others rushed to collect the free cash in the form of HK$500 notes, which are worth about $65 each.
Most of the cash was gone within minutes. “You couldn’t make it up,” a witness told the South China Morning Post. “There were 20 or 30 people picking up cash from the road on Christmas Eve. They looked like school kids who knew they were being naughty, but thought: ‘This is a once in a lifetime thing.’ Everyone had the same look on their face.”
One taxi driver stopped his cab and started loading it with as much cash as he could. Another woman was seen carrying a pile of cash the size of ten “bricks.” “She looked like a very regular Hong Kong lady. She had an armful of bricks of cash – it was as much as she could carry,” the witness said. Police were called to the scene at around 2 p.m. local time.
Authorities have issued a call to the public, asking that the money to be returned to police. “I would like to take the opportunity to appeal to every member of the public that if they picked up any money to handover to any police officer or any police station as soon as possible. If he or she keeps the money for his own use, he may commit an offence of theft, which is a very serious crime under ordinance,” police superintendent Wan Siu-hong said on Wednesday. rt.com |
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