Hong Kong Customs seized about 3.57 million suspected illicit cigarettes worth an estimated HK$16 million in two raids on Tuesday, arresting two men in Kwai Chung and Yuen Long.
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In the first case, Customs officers patrolling an industrial building in Kwai Chung in the morning spotted a man pushing multiple large suitcases and bags into a unit. A search of the luggage uncovered about 130,000 suspected illicit cigarettes, leading to the arrest of a 46-year-old man holding a two-way permit. A further search of the unit uncovered an additional 2.11 million cigarettes, bringing the total seizure to about 2.24 million.
Customs said the presence of large numbers of suitcases, bags, cartons, and packaging materials suggested a syndicate was using inbound travellers to smuggle cigarettes into Hong Kong in an "ant-move-home" strategy, using the industrial unit as a distribution centre for repackaging. Some cigarettes had been repackaged and stacked on pallets, suspected to be destined for export to overseas markets with higher tobacco duties, though local supply was also possible.
In the second case, Customs acted on intelligence to target a rural tin shed in Yuen Long. Officers stopped a 61-year-old local man outside the site and found about 50,000 suspected illicit cigarettes in his private car. A subsequent search of the shed uncovered another 1.28 million cigarettes, bringing the total to about 1.33 million. Customs believes the cigarettes were intended for supply in the Yuen Long area.
Both arrested men claimed to be unemployed. Customs reminded the public that dealing in illicit cigarettes is illegal, with offenders facing a maximum penalty of HK$2 million and seven years imprisonment upon conviction.
