Customs arrest 10 in HK$56m drug bust

Hong Kong customs authorities have made 10 arrests and seized approximately 240 kilos of suspected narcotics, valued at around HK$56 million, as part of a month-long international anti-drug trafficking operation dubbed Flame Mesh. The enforcement campaign, which ran from July 13 to August 17, targeted drug syndicates exploiting Hong Kong as a transit point for smuggling cannabis from Southeast Asia to Europe and Africa.

The arrested individuals consisted of nine men and one woman, ranging in age from 18 to 57. Acting Senior Inspector Chan Kai-hin of the Airport Command’s Apron Division stated that most of the detained travelers had arrived from Southeast Asia and were transiting through Hong Kong on their way to European or African destinations. X-ray scans of their luggage revealed no personal belongings, only suspicious packages, prompting law enforcement to take action.

Senior Investigator Chow Kai-kwong of the Customs Drug Investigation Bureau’s Airport Investigation Group explained that the investigation pointed to a trafficking ring that was using financial incentives to recruit people of various nationalities to smuggle cannabis out of Southeast Asia via Hong Kong, in an attempt to evade law enforcement scrutiny. He expressed confidence that the operation had successfully disrupted the syndicate's route of using Hong Kong as a launching pad for drug trafficking to Europe and Africa.

Customs authorities have pledged to continue monitoring the latest trends in drug trafficking, intensifying random checks on suspicious baggage based on risk assessment, and bringing offenders to justice. They reaffirmed their commitment to maintaining close cooperation with overseas customs agencies through intelligence-sharing and joint missions to trace drug sources and combat cross-border trafficking networks.