THE notorious “King of Robbery,” Yip Kai-foon, who masterminded a series of armed robberies of jewelry shops in Hong Kong in the 1980s died in a hospital yesterday.

    The 55-year-old has been serving a 41-year term in the maximum security Stanley Prison for possession of firearms and escaping from custody.

    In one of the most daring acts, Yip and his gang, armed with machine guns, engaged in a gunfight with the police on the streets of Kwun Tong in 1991. He had escaped from jail two years earlier and managed to evade capture after the running battle.

    Correctional Services said Yip suffered from cancer and was taken to the hospital April 1 when his condition worsened.

    His death has been reported to the police and an inquest will be held by the Coroner’s Court.

    Yip, who was born in Haifeng in Guangdong Province, started his cross-border raids in the mid- 1980s, leading a gang armed with AK47s that targeted jewelry shops across Kowloon. They fired at will and got away with stones worth millions of dollars.

    But Yip was caught in a police sting operation in 1984 and arrested with two guns that were used in the armed raids. He was sentenced to 18 years in prison.

    Yip made even more news with his sensational escape from Queen Mary Hospital in 1989, where he had been taken after pretending to have a stomach ache. He tricked his guards and got away after hijacking a private vehicle.  

    (SD-Agencies)