A Hong Kong businessman lost more than HK$1.8 million (US$229,405) in valuables and cash in a burglary that took place when he and his family left their home in Sha Tin for dinner, police said on Tuesday.

The valuables, including seven watches and some gold ornaments, were stolen from his ninth-floor flat in the Great Hill housing estate on Tung Lo Wan Hill Road in Sha Tin on Monday night.

The 41-year-old man, his wife, two children and two domestic helpers left the flat and went out for dinner shortly after 5pm on Monday.

The burglary came to light when they returned soon after 9.30pm and found his master bedroom had been ransacked.

“A safe hidden in a wardrobe had been prised open,” a source familiar with the case said, adding 20 gold ornaments worth HK$850,000 and seven watches valued at HK$960,000 were stolen, along with HK$30,000 from the safe and drawers in the bedroom.

“An initial investigation suggested a burglar clambered up the drainpipes and climbed into the flat’s bathroom through an unlocked window,” the source said.

Officers checked security camera footage to gather evidence. So far, no arrests have been made.

Detectives from the Sha Tin criminal investigation unit are following up on the case.

Police handled 886 reports of burglary across the city last year, down nearly 40 per cent from 1,472 cases in 2021. According to the force, last year’s detection rate of 43 per cent was the highest in the past 46 years.

When announcing last year’s overall crime situation in the city earlier this month, police said the number of robbery and burglary cases was the lowest since records began in 1969.

There were 77 reports of robbery last year, down 37 per cent from 123 cases the year before. The detection rate was 74 per cent.

The force said police would continue to mount intelligence-led operations and deploy resources flexibly to combat relevant crimes.