Hong Kong street racers had been beating the city's 70 speed cameras and 60 red light cameras for more than a year. HK police began to become suspicious when they noticed an unusual number of vehicles photographed with no license plate visible.

After setting up a sting operation on Sunday, the police discovered exactly what was happening. Fourteen vehicles were found to be equipped with radar detectors and a red button next to the shifter. The button flips the rear license plate down, making it invisible to the camera -- as seen in various James Bond films.

Article Excerpt:

While speeding is a serious offence, the penalty for switching or not
displaying your car's licence plate is not very severe.

For switching car plates, a person can be fined up to $2,000 or jailed up to
six months. For not displaying a car registration plate properly, the maximum
fine is only $400.