Traveler arrested over $1.2m ingested cocaine pellets

Customs officers seized about 1.2 kilograms of suspected cocaine with an estimated market value of about HK$1.2 million from a 43-year-old male traveler who swallowed the drugs.

The suspect arrived from Addis Ababa via Bangkok on Sunday and was intercepted by Hong Kong Customs and Excise Department officers at the airport after officers conducting risk assessment procedures noticed that his luggage was relatively small and that he had not booked a hotel room in advance.

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Deconstructing my future

I hope my story will remind people not to get involved in drug trafficking activities. 

I used to be a construction worker but I lost my job at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. At around the same time, the rest of my family members also lost their jobs. I heard from some friends about a way to earn “quick cash”. In my desperation, I made the wrong and regretful decision to get into drug trafficking. The money did come quickly, but I now know it was not worth it at all. I hurt a lot of people, especially my family, and I also lost my freedom.

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A mother’s gamble

I left Sao Paulo on June 28, 2022, for Hong Kong where I was caught with drugs at the airport. I had never done anything so wrong in my life.

I was motivated to do this because of financial problems. I needed to save my son from a gambling debt. Online games today are where many young people in Brazil surrender to addiction. My son is 21 years old and was working when I found out he owed a lot of money to the online gambling bank. Because of this, my son left town so I was worried. Faced with this problem, an old acquaintance told me that I could earn money doing this job, that it would be quick and easy, so out of desperation I accepted.

I was aware of what I was doing, but I didn’t know the consequences. Continue reading A mother’s gamble

Don’t play with your life

I got arrested for drug trafficking and I have been on remand for over two years now. I am very grateful for this opportunity to share my story, hoping my experience will reach young people and change their way of life and not attempt drug trafficking or drug use.

I grew up in a low-income family. I have five siblings with me being the youngest. We rarely talked and I didn’t want to listen to my parents. When I was in school, I was very naughty. I would call the school to report myself sick and then go hang out in Internet cafes, arcades, or pool halls.

I met some friends during this period, and eventually joined a gang. We did a lot of illegal things. Our gang boss would take us around to hang out and play. 

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My future is doomed

I would like to take this opportunity to persuade you all DO NOT engage in any drug trafficking activities! Let me first introduce my background. I was arrested due to drug trafficking, and I am currently under custody at Tai Lam Correctional Institution.

Because of some family issues, I mixed with the wrong crowd. They lured me into drug trafficking with money, which put me in jail for years at this young age. I was so nervous during those days when I transported drugs for them. Despite knowing that I would definitely be sent to jail if I was caught I thought I would be lucky enough not to get caught by the police.

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Victim of an elaborate mafia scheme

This is the story of how I came to be in custody by Hong Kong’s Customs for being found in possession of dangerous drugs upon my arrival at the Hong Kong International Airport on Saturday, October 6, 2018.

I’m a 64-year-old man from Honduras. I’m a professional in Social Sciences and Social Work with a Master’s degree in Public Health from the National University in Honduras. I’ve dedicated more than 35 years to the management, design, and implementation of social projects for poor families in my country. I did this work through NGOs and in close coordination with governmental programs.

In May 2018 I was contacted by the United Nations and the Central Bank of Nigeria (BCN) about the approval of some funds to work on social programs for the next seven years (2018-2025). The funds would be channeled through the UN which would pay the funds through the Nigerian Central Bank and the latter through the HSBC bank in Hong Kong. 

Before I traveled to Hong Kong I was informed I would need to go to Sao Paulo Brazil first to sign some documents (certificates of approval). I was sent the money for the journey.

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The delivery that brought me to my knees

I was arrested by Hong Kong Customs for trafficking dangerous drugs. I have been living with guilt and regret for months. I don’t know how to handle this inner struggle. My worries for my family have not stopped since my arrest. I regret choosing the wrong path to earn money.

Some time ago my father was diagnosed with colorectal cancer and he recovered after having surgery. However, about a year ago, my father started to notice his health deteriorating, and it seemed that his cancer had come back. At about this time, I had plans to marry my girlfriend whom I had been dating for five years. We have been through a lot of difficulties together. She was always by my side when I was having financial hardships. She also took care of me when I got injured due to work. She was 29 years old and I wanted to marry her and build a family together before she turned 30.

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Hong Kong court sentences 3 to almost 30 years for making drugs

Hong Kong’s High Court has sentenced three people to almost 30 years in prison for manufacturing methamphetamine, including one who sent his 15-year-old daughter on a shopping trip for equipment.

Hongkonger Kent Lam, 58; Torres Gonzalez Marco Valerio, 35, from Mexico; and Enriquez Anna Mae Justimbaste, 41, from the Philippines appeared in front of Judge Esther Toh for sentencing on Friday. They were earlier convicted by a jury of conspiracy to manufacture dangerous drugs.

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Russian roulette

I’m a woman, a Russian citizen. I want to share with you the tragic story of my life. I’m now in custody in Hong Kong, awaiting my sentence.

In or about autumn 2016, a good friend told me about her boyfriend who was at the time in Brazil working and would soon return to Russia. Not long later, after her boyfriend returned, I asked him for details of the job he was doing while in Brazil. He told me he did nothing serious, he had been sent to Brazil to pick up a suitcase and transport it to Asia. My friend then gave me the name of the guy who sent her boyfriend to Brazil. He is from Belarus. 

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Drug trafficking is never a good choice

I met a friend a long time ago when I was working in Malaysia. We worked at the same Thai massage shop. She was always good to me. I borrowed money from her when I had financial difficulties. She would also tell me I needn’t worry about returning her the money quickly. At that time I had borrowed a total of 20,000 baht from her. 

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Drugs are not a game worth playing

It happened at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, between 2019 and 2020.

School classes were suspended, so I often went to play soccer. I met a new friend there. We frequently hung out, went drinking, shopping, and played soccer together.

One day, he asked if I could help him to check into a hotel. He said he had a fight with his parents and needed to stay out for a few days. I didn’t think too much of it so I helped him as he was under 18. After we checked into the hotel, he gave me a suitcase and asked me to take it up to the room and leave. I gave him the room key card and left afterward. What happened next, I only learned from watching the police’s CCTV evidence. Continue reading Drugs are not a game worth playing

Ignorance is evil

“The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance.”

I’d like to take this opportunity to warn all Taiwanese people not to blindly believe in what other people say. Be careful who you trust and always verify all the facts yourself. The consequences may be severe, you may have to pay a heavy price, including prison time.

For instance, no matter the crime, if committed overseas, you’ll never have an option to be handed over back to your own country for trial or to serve your sentence. Don’t be fooled! Don’t be greedy, and don’t be tricked into committing a crime. The consequences of being caught for drug trafficking are very serious, some countries even give the death penalty if caught! In some other countries, jail time may range between 10 to over 20 years. Is it really worth it? It would be too late for regrets when the mistake has been made.

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Hong Kong Customs makes record seizure of methamphetamine

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.

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Two boys, 15 and 16, arrested in HK$1.3m Kwun Tong drug bust

Two boys aged 15 and 16 were among three arrested as police raided two warehouses in Kwun Tong district and seized drugs worth about HK$1.3 million.

After investigation, officers from the East Kowloon regional crime squad raided a drug warehouse at a Kwun Tong industrial building on Wednesday night, where they intercepted two teenage boys aged 15 and 16.

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