Briefly

Cold front expected to bring chill and snow

A new cold front is poised to sweep across China, bringing strong winds and significant temperature drops over the next three days, along with snowfall in northern regions and rainy conditions in the south, the National Meteorological Center said on Monday. From Monday through Thursday, large parts of the country will experience temperature drops of 4 to 6 C.Light to moderate rain is expected in southern Shaanxi province, the Huanghuai region and Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, while light to moderate snow or sleet will affect areas that include Gansu province, Inner Mongolia autonomous region and northeastern China. Meteorologists have issued advisories for the public to take precautions against wind and cold, noting that strong winds will exacerbate the perceived chill.

15 arrested in 1b yen robbery in Hong Kong

Fifteen people were arrested after 1 billion yen ($6.35 million) was robbed from a currency exchange shop earlier in Hong Kong's Sheung Wan, the Hong Kong police said on Monday. The police described the case as very serious, and are tracing the whereabouts of the stolen cash. On Dec 18, two employees of a Japanese company engaged in cryptocurrency and luxury goods business traveled to Sheung Wan, intending to exchange 1 billion yen packed in four suitcases. When they got out of their vehicle at 33 Wing Lok Street, a private car suddenly appeared. Three suspected robbers got out, one brandishing a knife, and seized the four suitcases containing the money. According to police, the apprehended suspects include 11 men and four women, aged between 20 and 69, all of whom are local residents, with some having triad backgrounds.

2 nabbed for defaming basketball team online

Police in Beijing have detained two men accused of using artificial intelligence to fabricate and spread false videos targeting a coach and players from China's women's national basketball team, authorities said on Monday. According to a statement released by the Chaoyang district police, police identified the suspects as two 32-year-old men surnamed Lin and Chen and detained them after tracing the source of the videos. Using AI software, they fabricated a false narrative accusing a women's basketball coach of mistreating an athlete, then combined manipulated text with publicly available images and videos of the coach and player to create misleading clips, police said. The videos were posted on personal social media accounts to attract traffic. After building up the accounts, the suspects sold them for profit, earning about 4,000 yuan ($560).

China Daily - Xinhua