Residents of Wang Fuk Court Begin Second Round of Return Arrangements After Recent Displacement

2026-04-23 22:39 Last Updated At：22:48

Government concludes fourth-day arrangements for Wang Fuk Court residents returning to their units

Today (April 23) is the fourth day of phased arrangements for residents of seven blocks of Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po to return to their units. The second round of the phased arrangements commenced today. Five low-zone floors of Wang Cheong House and 10 low-zone floors of Wang Yan House were opened. The access arrangements were carried out in an orderly manner.

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Government concludes fourth-day arrangements for Wang Fuk Court residents returning to their units Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

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Government concludes fourth-day arrangements for Wang Fuk Court residents returning to their units Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

A total of 117 households (429 people) registered to return to their units today through the "one social worker per household" service, while 115 households (424 people) actually turned up.

The average time residents spent entering and leaving the building today was two hours and 13 minutes, with the shortest time being 10 minutes and the longest three hours and 42 minutes. About 40 per cent of the residents stayed in the building for less than two hours. About 10 per cent of the residents stayed in the building for less than one hour.

A total of 61 households (153 people) went up and down the building more than once. Among them, 24 households (76 people) made one additional trip, 15 households (34 people) made two additional trips, and 11 households (24 people) made three additional trips, 5 households (7 people) made four additional trips, and 6 households (12 people) made five additional trips or above.

The integrated enquiry counter set up by relevant departments today received 8 cases requesting police assistance and 4 cases involving residents seeking help due to physical discomfort, as well as 1 case seeking psychological counselling services.

The 8 cases requesting police assistance involved suspected loss of property, including watches, jewellery, cash and gold items. Officers were immediately deployed to assist in searches, and in 6 of them, the Police successfully assisted in recovering the lost property. In the other one case, the flat was seriously damaged, and after investigation, the residents believed that the property may have been burned. For the remaining one case, there were no signs of ransacking in the unit, and the residents could not provide details on the property concerned.

In response to an increase in occasional showers, adjustments were made on-site today. Additional marquees were set up outside the waiting area for residents at Tai Po Baptist Public School, creating a covered pedestrian walkway to provide shelter from the rain and facilitate residents in transporting their belongings to the vehicles.

Each day, the Government deploys over 1 000 personnel from various departments, including the Police, the Civil Aid Service, the Fire Services Department, the Auxiliary Medical Service, the Home Affairs Department, the Social Welfare Department, the Housing Department, and the Housing Bureau, and staff mobilised from other departments, as well as District Services and Community Care Teams members to fully support residents returning to their units.

Three Passengers Sentenced for Importing Duty-Not-Paid Cigarettes at Hong Kong Airport

Three incoming passengers convicted and jailed for importing duty-not-paid cigarettes

Three incoming passengers were sentenced to three to ten months' imprisonment and fined $1,000 each by the West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts today (April 23) for importing duty-not-paid cigarettes and failing to declare them to Customs officers, in contravention of the Dutiable Commodities Ordinance (DCO).

The first case invloved a 40-year-old incoming male passenger. During customs clearance, Customs officers seized 145 000 duty-not-paid cigarettes, with an estimated market value of about $652,500 and a duty potential of about $479,300, from his personal baggage at Hong Kong International Airport on April 14. The passenger was subsequently arrested. He was sentenced to ten months' imprisonment and fined $1,000 today.

The second case involved a 20-year-old incoming male passenger. During customs clearance, Customs officers seized 64 400 duty-not-paid cigarettes, with an estimated market value of about $322,000 and a duty potential of about $212,900, from his personal baggage at Hong Kong International Airport on April 21. The passenger was subsequently arrested. He was sentenced to six months' imprisonment and fined $1,000 today.

The third case involved a 29-year-old incoming male passenger. During customs clearance, Customs officers seized 12 588 duty-not-paid cigarettes, with an estimated market value of about $56,600 and a duty potential of about $41,600, from his personal baggage at Hong Kong International Airport yesterday (April 22). The passenger was subsequently arrested. He was sentenced to three months' imprisonment and fined $1,000 today.

Customs welcomes the sentences. The custodial sentences have imposed a considerable deterrent effect and reflect the seriousness of the offences.

Customs reminds members of the public that under the DCO, cigarettes are dutiable goods to which the DCO applies. Any person who imports, deals with, possesses, sells or buys illicit cigarettes commits an offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $2 million and imprisonment for seven years.

Members of the public may report any suspected illicit cigarette activities to Customs' 24-hour hotline 182 8080 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk) or online form (eform.cefs.gov.hk/form/ced002).

Residents of Wang Fuk Court Begin Second Round of Return Arrangements After Recent Displacement

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