With the assistance of Mainland counterparts, Hong Kong Customs smashed a cross-boundary marked oil smuggling syndicate on May 3 with the arrest of 19 persons.
It was the first time that Hong Kong Customs invoked the Organised and Serious Crimes Ordinance (OSCO) to freeze proceeds in relation to a marked oil smuggling case and involved a restraint order for a record $200 million worth of assets.
Since the end of last year, Hong Kong Customs had been co-operating closely with its Mainland counterparts with a view to cracking down on a cross-boundary marked oil smuggling syndicate. Mainland Customs mounted an operation in January in Shenzhen, Huizhou and Heyuan, with the seizure of 0.6 million litres of marked oil, 10 vessels, 33 oil trucks, 33 private cars and over RMB 4 million. A total of 134 persons were arrested.
Targeting the identified syndicate, Hong Kong Customs mounted an operation codenamed "Bottsand" on May 3 and mobilised nearly 140 officers to search 19 premises all over Hong Kong, including oil barges, offices and domestic premises. A total of 19 persons (12 men and seven women), aged between 21 and 56, including the suspected mastermind, company directors and oil barge workers, were arrested. Smuggling proceeds totalling $200 million worth of assets, including mainly bank deposits, assorted valuables and seven domestic properties, were uncovered and frozen under the OSCO.
The Head of Intelligence Bureau, Ms Kwok Ngan-ping, said at a press conference today (June 7) that the syndicate comprised several Hong Kong companies which supplied large quantities of marked oil from their oil barges to fishing vessels with enlarged oil tanks. The vessels smuggled the marked oil to the Mainland and transferred the marked oil via oil hoses and pumps to oil trucks on the seashore. The marked oil was then conveyed to underground detreating plants to remove the colouring substance and afterwards sold in the Mainland market for huge profits. It was estimated that the syndicate had smuggled about 130 million litres of marked oil in three months.
"The cross-boundary smuggling activities have been issues of common concern to both Hong Kong Customs and Mainland Customs. Both Customs administrations have been in close co-operation for conducting joint operations to combat smuggling activities. The success of this joint operation in smashing the cross-boundary marked oil smuggling syndicate clearly reflects the determination of both Customs administrations and the effectiveness of joint operation in combating smuggling activities," Ms Kwok said.
Investigation is still underway. All arrested persons were released on bail pending further investigation.
Under the Import and Export Ordinance, smuggling is a serious offence. The maximum penalty is imprisonment for seven years and a fine of $2 million. Under the OSCO, the maximum penalty for dealing with property known or believed to represent crime proceeds is imprisonment for 14 years and a fine of $5 million.
Ends/Monday, June 7, 2010
