Hong Kong Customs yesterday (December 10) detected a dangerous drugs internal concealment case involving an incoming passenger at Hong Kong International Airport and seized about 1.1 kilograms of suspected cocaine with an estimated market value of about $1.2 million.
A male passenger, aged 41, arrived in Hong Kong from Lagos, Nigeria, via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, yesterday. During Customs clearance, Customs officers found him to be suspicious and suspected that he had dangerous drugs concealed inside his body cavity. He was then escorted to the hospital for examination.
Upon examination, the man was confirmed by a medical officer to have foreign objects concealed inside his body cavity. He was arrested immediately. As at 5pm today (December 11), the arrested man has discharged 59 pellets of suspected cocaine weighing about 1.1kg in total.
An investigation is ongoing.
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/Monday, December 11, 2023
