Pirates seized gold bars from the steam launch Woh Fat Shing inside Hong Kong harbour, close to the headquarters of the forces meant to suppress them. The location made the 1927 robbery especially embarrassing and valuable to newspaper writers. British and American reports imagined formal pirate companies with boards of directors and ran sensational stories about women commanders. Most groups were instead connected to triads, fishing communities, or political factions seeking revenue. The organization of maritime crime was less corporate and more entangled with local society and Chinese political conflict than the colorful press mythology suggested.
Notable Point · 19:45-21:20
The Woh Fat Shing robbery exposes interwar pirate networks
A 1927 gold robbery inside Hong Kong harbour illustrates both piracy's audacity and the press mythology surrounding its organization.