On Jan. 22, Hong Kong Customs made a significant bust of a large-scale cigarette smuggling operation in the waters off Tsing Yi, seizing approximately 15 million suspected illicit cigarettes valued at around HK$67 million, with a taxable value of about HK$49 million.
Customs officers intercepted a suspicious fishing vessel in the area. Upon searching the boat, they found around 15 million suspected smuggled cigarettes in the hold. Four non-local men, aged between 32 and 60, were arrested during the operation.
Customs stated they will continue to investigate the source and destination of the smuggled cigarettes and do not rule out further arrests. The four men have been charged with "importing unmanifested cargo" and are scheduled to appear in West Kowloon Magistrates' Court today (Jan. 24).
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