12th September 2026 – (Hong Kong) A 36‑year‑old Food and Environmental Hygiene Department health inspector, Ling Tsun-ting has been released on bail following his arrest on suspicion of theft arising from an alleged dispute over jointly purchased Mark Six tickets among colleagues. Police received a report on 9th September concerning a pooled purchase for the 50th‑anniversary Snowball draw on 5th September, with the entries said to have secured half a first‑prize share valued at about HK$31 million. Officers arrested a local man on 11th September; he has been granted bail pending further enquiries and must report to police in mid‑October.
Public focus has moved to Ling’s service record and prior public statements. In late 2024, he appeared at a police briefing on criminal damage incidents at Aberdeen Market in his capacity as a Southern District health inspector for market management. During a media interview, he stressed that ‘Hong Kong is a place ruled by law and would not allow anyone to commit illegal acts’, aligning with the city’s zero‑tolerance stance towards intimidation and disorder that threaten law‑abiding businesses and residents. The contrast between those remarks and the current allegations has prompted scrutiny, though the present case remains under investigation and no conviction has been recorded.
Discussion has also centred on civil service pay scales for the inspector grade. Published bands indicate that a Health Inspector II earns a basic monthly salary in the mid‑HK$30,000s to mid‑HK$50,000s, rising to the high‑HK$50,000s to roughly HK$69,000 for Health Inspector I, with higher ranges for senior and chief inspector ranks. These figures are grade‑wide scales rather than evidence of Ling’s personal remuneration. Separately, social media comparisons have speculated about hypothetical monthly bank interest on HK$30 million at around three point three per cent; such arithmetic illustrations do not establish any actual deposits, interest receipts or entitlement, and should not be taken as fact in relation to the ongoing case.
The Mark Six 50th‑anniversary Snowball on 5th September carried a record first‑prize pool of HK$228 million, split among three and a half winning bets with each ticket paying HK$63,376,610. Police said the amount at issue in the pooled‑ticket dispute is roughly HK$30 million. Detectives in Western District are following up and the department has indicated continued cooperation with the investigation in the public interest of safeguarding Hong Kong’s rule of law and market order.