Hong Kong man caught stuffing raw meat into bag at hotpot buffet, claims it's his own bag of beef

An all-you-can-eat hot pot did not seem to be enough for two Hong Kong diners who were caught red-handed packing uncooked ingredients in a bag to take home.

Hong Kong English news outlet The Standard reported that the incident reportedly took place at The Aquatic Market in Tsuen Wan Plaza.

It was captured in a video circulating online on Sep. 27.

Caught on camera

In the video, which lasts around two minutes, a man who appeared to be a restaurant employee could be heard addressing the incident with the duo, The Standard reported.

The staff were supposedly alerted to their act because of the restaurant's CCTV footage.

He reportedly instructed the duo to remove the uncooked ingredients from the bag for hygiene reasons. The staff assured the diners that they could eat the food at the restaurant.

Denial

Upon getting caught, one of the diners allegedly denied the act.

He took out a plastic bag of seafood from his bag. He then supposedly said that another bag of beef he had did not belong to the restaurant.

The restaurant employee told the duo to take the items out. The employee added that the duo could take their time to enjoy the food, but they could not take the items home.

One of the diners handed over a bag of raw seafood, beef and instant noodles.

The restaurant is known for its fresh selection of seafood.

No apology, no penalty

The Standard reported that the duo had allegedly visited the restaurant two to three times and did not apologise for their actions when they left.

The restaurant decided not to report the incident to the police.

However, The Standard, quoting a barrister, noted that attempting to remove ingredients from an all-you-can-eat buffet could be classified as theft.

In a follow-up, the restaurant apologised for the unauthorised leaking of the footage and claimed it had only intended to use it for internal training. They have launched an internal investigation to determine how the leak occurred.

Top photos via The Standard