A man was convicted and sentenced to 34 months' imprisonment today (September 10) at the District Court for smuggling pangolin scales and breaching of condition of stay, in contravention of the Import and Export Ordinance (IEO) and the Immigration Ordinance.
Officers from Hong Kong Customs inspected an air consignment arriving from Malaysia at Hong Kong International Airport on September 10 last year and found about 64 kilograms of pangolin scales.
Upon follow-up investigation, Customs officers further seized about 190 kgs of pangolin scales at an industrial premises in Sheung Shui. The 41-year-old non-local man working therein was arrested in connection with the case.
Smuggling is a serious offence. Under the IEO, any person found guilty of importing or exporting unmanifested cargo is liable to a maximum fine of $2 million and imprisonment for seven years.
Under the Immigration Ordinance, any person who contravenes a condition of stay in force in respect of him shall be guilty of an offence and is liable to a maximum fine of HK$50,000 and imprisonment for two years.
Members of the public may report any suspected smuggling activities to Customs' 24-hour hotline 2545 6182 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk).
Ends/Tuesday, September 10, 2019