Police Bust Drug Warehouse and Village Lab, Arrest Two
HK01 · 1 SOURCESabout 2 hours ago2 MIN
Summary
Hong Kong police said they had broken up parts of a drug trafficking network operating in East Kowloon and the New Territories after raiding an old shopping arcade unit in Tsuen Wan and a village house in Yuen Long. Officers arrested an 18-year-old mainland man and a 17-year-old local girl, and said the drugs seized in the two operations had a combined estimated value of about HK$16 million.
Key Points
- The East Kowloon Regional Crime Unit said intelligence analysis identified a trafficking group using a roughly 170-square-foot shop in an old Tsuen Wan mall as a drug storage and repackaging point.
- At about 5pm on August 21, officers intercepted an 18-year-old mainland Chinese man holding a two-way permit, then found 264 resealable bags hidden inside new baby clothing sets packed in more than 20 cartons.
- Police seized 16 kilograms of suspected cocaine and about 1.5 kilograms of suspected methamphetamine from the shop unit, with an estimated market value of about HK$12 million.
- In a separate operation, Tseung Kwan O district anti-triad officers stopped a 17-year-old local unemployed girl outside a Yuen Long village house and searched the premises.
- Inside the village house, officers found about 3.6 kilograms of suspected crack cocaine, 500 grams of suspected cocaine, raw materials and drug-making equipment including a distiller and food dehydrators.
Why It Matters
Police said traffickers were using commercial premises and rented homes to store, process and manufacture drugs, while also targeting young people with promises of quick money. The force said it may seek heavier sentences through the Department of Justice in cases involving the use of youths in drug trafficking, underscoring the legal risks for both traffickers and property owners.