Two women sentenced for smuggling duty-not-paid cigarettes in Hong Kong, facing fines and imprisonment.

2026-06-02 21:20 Last Updated At：21:38

Two incoming passengers convicted and jailed for possession of duty-not-paid cigarettes

Two incoming female passengers were respectively sentenced to two months' imprisonment and a fine of $1,000, and four weeks' imprisonment and a fine of $1,000 by the Fanling Magistrates' Courts today (June 2) for possessing duty-not-paid cigarettes and failing to declare them to Customs officers, in contravention of the Dutiable Commodities Ordinance (DCO).

Customs officers intercepted an incoming 56-year-old female passenger at the Lo Wu Control Point on March 8 and seized 9 001 duty-not-paid cigarettes from her personal belongings, with an estimated market value of about $36,000 and a duty potential of about $29,000. She was subsequently arrested. She was sentenced to two months' imprisonment with a fine of $1,000 today.

Separately, Customs officers intercepted an incoming 54-year-old female passenger at the Lok Ma Chau Spur Line Control Point on May 31 and seized 1 200 duty-not-paid cigarettes from her, with an estimated market value of about $4,900 and a duty potential of about $3,960. She was subsequently arrested. She was sentenced to four weeks' imprisonment with a fine of $1,000 today.

Customs welcomes the sentences, noting that even a first-time offender may still be imprisoned. The custodial sentences have imposed a considerable deterrent effect and reflect the seriousness of the offences. Members of the public should not defy the law.

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).

John Lee Leads Hong Kong Delegation to Strengthen Business Ties with Kazakhstan

CE leads delegation to continue visit to Kazakhstan

The Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, today (June 2) led a business delegation comprising representatives from Hong Kong and Mainland enterprises to continue its visit programme to Kazakhstan. He met with the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan, Mr Olzhas Bektenov, visited various enterprises, and witnessed the achievement of multiple outcomes among government departments, enterprises and organisations of Hong Kong, the Mainland and Kazakhstan.

In the morning, Mr Lee visited Baiterek National Investment Holding, a national investment holding company of Kazakhstan, and met with the Chairman of the Board, Mr Rustam Timurovich Karagoishin. The company is a key financial operator of Kazakhstan's Government, with subsidiaries covering development bank, an entrepreneurship development fund, export insurance and housing, for promoting the sustainable growth of Kazakhstan's economy. He encouraged the company to leverage Hong Kong's well-established financial system and professional services to strengthen co-operation in areas such as infrastructure financing, bonds, and green finance. The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government is pushing ahead at full speed with the development of the Northern Metropolis (NM), which covers multiple innovation and technology (I&T) and infrastructure projects, and serves as a new engine for Hong Kong's future development. He welcomed the company to explore the development potential of the NM and to jointly create new business opportunities.

Afterwards, Mr Lee met with Mr Bektenov to exchange views on strengthening bilateral co-operation. He noted that at the beginning of this year, Hong Kong was the world's 10th-largest net investor in Kazakhstan, and Asia's fourth-largest, reflecting close economic and trade ties between the two places. Hong Kong enjoys the unique advantages of having strong support of the motherland and being closely connected to the world under the "one country, two systems" principle. Hong Kong is an international financial, shipping and trading centre, and ranks No. 1 globally in economic freedom, enabling it to build bridges and create opportunities for investors. Hong Kong has been leveraging its world-leading professional services to help enterprises go global. He expressed the hope that Hong Kong and Kazakhstan would strengthen hub-to-hub connectivity, with Kazakhstan serving as a hub for Hong Kong to connect with the Central Asian market, and Hong Kong serving as a hub for Kazakhstan to enter East and Southeast Asian markets, thereby establishing a hub-to-hub co-operation model for mutual benefit and win-win outcomes.

At noon, Mr Lee attended a business luncheon hosted by the HKSAR Government and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, where he delivered a speech to local political and business representatives, introducing Hong Kong's business advantages and development opportunities.

In his speech at the luncheon, Mr Lee was pleased to announce that multiple outcomes had been achieved during this visit. Notably, Hong Kong and Kazakhstan have agreed to push ahead at full speed with exploratory discussions on a Comprehensive Avoidance of Double Taxation Agreement, and discussions on an Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement, with the aim of concluding such agreements as soon as possible. In addition, a Hong Kong airline plans to launch direct flights to Almaty in the first quarter of 2027, further promoting economic, trade and people-to-people exchanges.

Mr Lee said that the Hong Kong business delegation has so far concluded a total of 43 Memoranda of Understanding and agreements covering areas including aviation, finance and trade, I&T, the digital economy, and green development. Discussions are continuing, and more co-operation agreements are expected to be reached.

In the afternoon, Mr Lee visited Samruk-Kazyna, the national sovereign wealth fund of Kazakhstan, and met with its Chief Executive Officer, Mr Nurlan Zhakupov, to learn about the fund's diversified portfolio of assets and Kazakhstan's investment strategies across different sectors. Mr Lee said that Hong Kong, as a safe harbour, offers a stable and secure investment environment. Hong Kong, ranked first globally in terms of funds raised through initial public offerings in the first quarter of this year, is an ideal listing and financing destination for the assets under the fund. He encouraged projects under the fund to list in Hong Kong and to make good use of Hong Kong's capital markets for investment risk diversification.

Mr Lee subsequently met with the Minister of Trade and Integration of Kazakhstan, Mr Arman Shakkaliyev, to exchange views on further deepening bilateral trade co-operation. Hong Kong is the world's fifth-largest trading entity in the merchandise trade economy, firmly supports and upholds free trade and multilateralism, and continues to expand its global trade network. Kazakhstan is actively expanding its role as a regional trading hub, promoting digital commerce and modernising its markets. There is vast room for co-operation between the two places in areas such as trade, logistics and financial technology. Enterprises in Kazakhstan can use Hong Kong as a gateway for exploring the markets of the Mainland and Asia. Hong Kong will continue to play its roles as a "super connector" and a "super value-adder", working hand in hand with Kazakhstan to explore new opportunities in economic and trade co-operation.

Mr Lee will continue his visit to Kazakhstan tomorrow (June 3) before proceeding to Uzbekistan to continue his visit programme.

Two women sentenced for smuggling duty-not-paid cigarettes in Hong Kong, facing fines and imprisonment.

HK

Two women sentenced for smuggling duty-not-paid cigarettes in Hong Kong, facing fines and imprisonment.

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