Hong Kong Customs on October 25 detected a dangerous drugs internal concealment case involving a passenger at Hong Kong International Airport and seized about 570 grams of suspected cocaine with an estimated market value of about $600,000.
A female passenger, aged 53, arrived in Hong Kong from Bogata, Colombia via Paris, France, on that day. During customs clearance, Customs officers found her to be suspicious and suspected that she had dangerous drugs concealed inside her body cavity. She was then escorted to the hospital for examination.
Upon examination, the woman was confirmed by a doctor to have a foreign object concealed inside her body cavity. She was arrested immediately. The arrested woman has excreted a pellet of suspected cocaine weighing about 570g.
A holding charge with one count of trafficking in a dangerous drug has been laid against the arrested woman. The case will be brought up at the West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts tomorrow (October 28).
Following the resumption of normal travel and exchanges with the Mainland and other parts of the world, the number of visitors to Hong Kong has also been increasing steadily. Customs will continue to apply a risk assessment approach and focus on selecting passengers from high-risk regions for clearance to combat transnational drug trafficking activities.
Under the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, trafficking in a dangerous drug is a serious offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $5 million and life imprisonment.
Members of the public may report any suspected drug trafficking activities to Customs' 24-hour hotline 2545 6182 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk) or online form (eform.cefs.gov.hk/form/ced002).
Ends/Friday, October 27, 2023
