Jay Chou concert tickets so valuable that a man was allegedly robbed of his in Hong Kong

How far would you go to get concert tickets for your favourite singer?

It appears that even theft is not out of the question for some, as a man going for a Jay Chou concert in Hong Kong found out yesterday (May 11).

According to Hong Kong media HK01, local police allegedly received a report from the man at around 9pm about his two tickets being stolen on Tin Wah Road, while he was headed to catch Jay Chou at the Central Harbourfront Event Space in Hong Kong Central.

After preliminary investigations, the case was classified as a robbery, but no arrests have been made thus far.

The 44-year-old King of Mandopop is in the midst of seven shows in Hong Kong on his Carnival World Tour, with last night's concert marking the fifth night. Tickets go from HK$580 (S$99) to HK$1,380.

HK01 added there were also close to 10,000 fans loitering outside the concert venue to listen to Jay.

Baohui Entertainment, the concert organiser, told Hong Kong media that they were unaware of the ticket theft until the police report was made, and believed the authorities would deal with it appropriately.

They also reminded ticket holders to take a photo of their valid ticket to record their seat number, and ask contact organisers for assistance should they lose their tickets. If they did not have proof of the ticket, they added, organisers could not help them in case of ticket loss.

They urged the public not to engage with scalpers trying to sell passers-by tickets, as it was impossible to know whether the tickets are valid. They also warned ticket holders of people trying to purchase tickets outside the concert venue, lest they be deceived or robbed.

While literal theft of tickets is uncommon, scalping is not.

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Just last month, Jacky Cheung fans were dismayed when tickets for his six-day concert in Singapore sold out within four hours, and were marked up significantly for resale.

When AsiaOne checked Carousell on April 28, a Cat 1 ticket, which originally cost $388, was being resold at $2,000. Another listing was selling four Cat 1 tickets for $9,888 in total. Two Cat 2 tickets originally priced at $328 each were also going for $1,588.

Local media reported of someone bragging on the radio that they managed to snap up 32 tickets, leaving fans incensed as the organiser had limited each transaction to four tickets.

Thankfully for Jacky's fans, the organisers announced three additional concert dates for the beloved Heavenly King, though the 24,000 tickets were sold out in two-and-a-half hours.

Last year, scalpers here were selling tickets to Jackson Wang's Marquee party for $500, over six times the original price.

ALSO READ: 'Can't disclose details for now': Jay Chou and Stephen Chow 'in talks' for a collaboration

drimac@asiaone.com