Hong Kong police seize more than a tonne of illegal fireworks and firecrackers near border checkpoint
- The HK$2 million haul was found hidden in a shipping container in Lok Ma Chau and is believed to have come from mainland China
- Police think the fireworks were intended for illegal sale over the Lunar New Year period
More than a tonne of illegal fireworks and firecrackers smuggled into Hong Kong from mainland China were confiscated by police in an outdoor container yard near the Lok Ma Chau border checkpoint in the run-up to the Lunar New Year.
With the help of a sniffer dog from the force’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal Bureau, the HK$2 million (US$254,900) haul was found hidden in a shipping container at Ki Lun Tsuen off Kwu Tung Road, Lok Ma Chau at about 4pm on Tuesday.
Inside the yard, officers arrested a 62-year-old man on suspicion of possession of illegal fireworks and firecrackers – an offence which carries a maximum penalty of a HK$25,000 fine and six months in jail. He was in charge of the container yard, according to police.
Chief Inspector Lam Sze-yi of the New Territories North regional crime unit said the 1.1 tonnes of fireworks and firecrackers found in the operation was the largest seizure of this kind in recent years.
She believed the consignment might have been intended for illegal sale in the New Territories during the Lunar New Year period.
