The Customs and Excise Department of Hong Kong (Hong Kong Customs) jointly mounted an anti-narcotics operation, codenamed “Yunzhan-duanliu”, with the Anti-Smuggling Bureau of the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China (GACC), the Anti-Smuggling Bureau of the Guangdong Sub-Administration of the GACC, and the Anti-Smuggling Bureau of Shenzhen Customs in March. Hong Kong Customs seized about 700 kilograms of suspected methamphetamine with an estimated market value of $400 million in the operation at Hong Kong International Airport and a logistics warehouse. This is a record seizure of methamphetamine by Hong Kong Customs. Two men were arrested in the case.
The first shipment was found on March 18, customs’ airport drug investigation team head Lee Man-lok said. Through risk assessment, officers of Hong Kong Customs first inspected an airborne consignment declared as containing transformers that arrived from Mexico at Hong Kong International Airport on March 18. About 447kg of suspected liquid methamphetamine was found concealed inside three huge transformers.
Since X-ray images of the transformers looked suspicious, officers disassembled them to find what they seemed to be motor oil inside. Subsequent drug tests identified meth in the liquid. Indeed, the three transformers contained some 447kg of the drug.
The 44-year-old owner of a transport company – which was set to collect the transformers at the airport – was subsequently arrested.
He had been commissioned by a mainland logistics company to transport the transformers to a Fan Ling warehouse for temporary storage.
“It is believed someone was using the logistics company to remotely conduct drug trafficking,” Lee said, adding mainland authorities were contacted afterward to launch a joint operation.
Six days after the initial drug find, officers raided a Sheung Shui warehouse where they discovered 10 cylindrical shock absorbers – devices used to dampen shock impulses – containing the drugs.
Source: HK Customs