Nine custom-order smugglers nabbed

Customs and marine police officers have cracked a smuggling case in north Lantau, seizing HK$18 million worth of luxury products, including dried seafood, wine, designer clothes, cosmetic products and cigars.

Danny Cheung Kwok-yin, divisional commander of the customs and excise department's marine investigation, said travel curbs for mainlanders gave smugglers extra incentive to step up their runs at this time.

"It is believed some individuals took the orders of mainland customers online and then smuggled in the goods," he said.

Nine local men were arrested in the operation involving officers from customs' marine enforcement and the marine police's regional task force, small boat division and west division on Monday.

Ip Hau-foon, senior inspector of the marine police's regional task force, said the arrests were made when the nine were unloading goods from a lorry onto a speedboat near the airport.

Officers first spotted the speedboat in the waters off the southeast of the airport at 9pm on Monday, which later sped toward the rocky shore near the Sham Shui Kok Chlorine Unloading Area.

"The boat then berthed near the shore, and a lorry soon parked nearby," Ip said.

"Suddenly, eight men came out from bushes and began unloading the goods with the help of the lorry's driver."

The nine then slid the goods onto the boat's deck with an iron ladder and "tried to escape using the speedboat when they spotted officers coming," he said. Ip said customs officers had been monitoring the waters off north Lantau over the past two weeks over suspicions of smuggling.

Customs commander Cheung said 109 boxes and 21 bags, which together contained 341 kilograms of dried fish maw, 228 kilograms of birds' nests, 291 millilitres of wine, 866 pieces of designer clothing, 9,187 pieces of cosmetic products, 1,250 grams of cigars and 1,924 boxes of "health food" were seized.

"The goods involved are more diverse than those seized in the past," he said.