2 arrested in cigarette seizure

February 12, 2012

Customs officers yesterday seized a cross-boundary lorry containing 92 boxes of illicit cigarettes worth about $2.8 million and arrested two men, aged 41 and 54, in Sheung Shui.
 
At about 1.30pm yesterday, officers spotted the lorry in a public car park at Fung Nam Road where they saw the two men off-loading wooden boxes onto a local rental lorry.  Customs officers then took action and found the 1.1 million cigarettes with a duty potential of $1.9 million.
 
The maximum penalty on conviction for dealing with, possessing, selling or buying illicit cigarettes is two years in jail and a $1 million fine.
 
Report any suspected illicit cigarette activities to the Customs' 24-hour hotline, 2545 6182.