Hong Kong Customs detects two drug trafficking cases involving incoming passengers at airport
Hong Kong Customs yesterday (September 6) detected two drug trafficking cases involving incoming air passengers at Hong Kong International Airport, and seized a total of about 7.5 kilograms of suspected cocaine, about 16kg of suspected ketamine, 52 sticks of duty-not-paid cigarettes, one suspected alternative smoking product and four boxes of suspected Part 1 poisons, with a total estimated market value of about $11 million. Two men were arrested.
In the first case, a 48-year-old Japanese male passenger arrived in Hong Kong from Bangkok, Thailand, yesterday. During customs clearance, Customs officers found 7.5kg of suspected cocaine inside his check-in baggage, and 52 sticks of duty-not-paid cigarettes inside his carry-on baggage. The man was subsequently arrested.
In the second case, a 34-year-old British male passenger arrived in Hong Kong from London, the United Kingdom, yesterday. During customs clearance, Customs officers found 16kg of suspected ketamine inside his check-in baggage, and one suspected alternative smoking product and four boxes of suspected Part 1 poisons inside his carry-on baggage. The man was subsequently arrested.
The arrested man in the first case has been charged with one count of trafficking in a dangerous drug, one count of possession of dutiable goods and one count of failing to declare to a member of the Customs and Excise Service the possession of dutiable goods. The arrested man in the second case has been charged with one count of trafficking in a dangerous drug, one count of importing an alternative smoking product and one count of possession of Part 1 poison. The two cases will be brought up at the West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts tomorrow (September 8).
Customs will continue to step up enforcement against drug trafficking activities through intelligence analysis. The department also reminds members of the public to stay alert and not to participate in drug trafficking activities for monetary return. They must not accept hiring or delegation from another party to carry controlled items into and out of Hong Kong. They are also reminded not to carry unknown items for other people.
Customs will continue to apply a risk assessment approach and focus on selecting passengers from high-risk regions for clearance to combat transnational drug trafficking activities.
Under the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, trafficking in a dangerous drug is a serious offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $5 million and life imprisonment.
Under the Dutiable Commodities Ordinance, 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.
Under the Import and Export Ordinance, any person who imports an alternative smoking product into Hong Kong commits an offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $2 million and imprisonment for seven years.
Under the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance, any person who possesses any poison included in Part 1 of the Poisons List other than in accordance with provisions commits an offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $100,000 and imprisonment for two years.
Members of the public may report any suspected drug trafficking 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).
Hong Kong Customs detects two drug trafficking cases involving incoming passengers at airport Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Hong Kong Customs detects two drug trafficking cases involving incoming passengers at airport Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Hong Kong Customs detects two drug trafficking cases involving incoming passengers at airport Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Secretary for Health receives seasonal influenza vaccination
The Secretary for Health, Professor Lo Chung-mau, received a seasonal influenza vaccination (SIV) at Sai Wan Ho Family Medicine Clinic today (September 7). The Permanent Secretary for Health, Mr Thomas Chan; the Under Secretary for Health, Dr Cecilia Fan;the Director of Health, Dr Ronald Lam; the Controller of the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health (DH), Dr Edwin Tsui; the Commissioner for Primary Healthcare of the Health Bureau (HHB), DrPang Fei-chau; the Chairman of the Hospital Authority (HA), Mr Henry Fan; the Chief Executive of the HA, Dr Libby Lee;the Assistant Director of the Strategic Purchasing Office of the HHB, Dr Christina Maw,and frontline healthcareworkers also joined the effort and received vaccinations.
Professor Lo said, "SIV is one of the most effective means to prevent seasonal influenza and its complications. It takes about two weeks after vaccination for antibodies to develop in the body and provide protection against influenza virus infection. To be preparedfor the current summer and possible winter influenza seasons in one go, I strongly appeal to all members of the public to receive SIV as early as possible."
SIV can effectively reduce the risks of serious illnesses and death. All members of the public aged 6 months or above, except those with known contraindications, should receive SIV. With the concerted efforts of the Government and various sectors of the community (including the medical sectors, schools, parents and residential care homes), over 2.03 million doses of vaccines were administered under the various SIV programmes in the previous year of 2025/26, with overall coverage rates of the target population remaining similar to those of the preceding year. Among children and adolescents, the SIV rate for persons aged 6 months to under 18 years reached 64.8 per cent, which is 13.1 percentage points higher than the average for the same period over the past three seasons (51.7 per cent). The vaccination rate for adolescents aged 12 to under 18 years reached 61.4 per cent, representing a substantial increase of 22.6 percentage points compared with the average for the same period over the past three seasons (38.8 per cent). Under the Seasonal Influenza Vaccination School Outreach Programme (SIVSOP), more than 2 300 schools (representing 99 per cent of all schools) completed SIV outreach activities by the end of December 2025, up from 91 per cent in the preceding year.
The Government will launch the 2026/27 Seasonal Influenza Vaccination Programmes, including the Vaccination Subsidy Scheme (VSS), the Government Vaccination Programme, the SIVSOP and the Residential Care Home Vaccination Programme next Thursday (September 17) to provide free or subsidised SIV for children and adolescents aged 6 months to under 18 years; adults aged 18 to 49 with chronic medical conditions (regardless of financial status); persons aged 50 or above (including the elderly living in residential care homes); pregnant women and healthcare workers, and others. For the 2026/27 SIV programmes, the Government has procured approximately 1.3 million doses of four types of influenza vaccines. These four types of vaccines and their suppliers have all met Hong Kong'sstrict regulatory requirements for pharmaceutical products. The Government has also procured 300000 vaccine doses for eligible doctors under the Pilot Scheme on Vaccine Procurement for Doctors (Pilot Scheme).
Professor Lo added, "The Government has consistently accorded high priority to the SIV programmes and has, on an ongoing basis, introduced enhancement measures every year with a view to raising vaccination coverage rates. This year, the Government will implement four optimising initiatives, which are optimising vaccine procurement arrangements with the diversified, non-single-supplier procurement approach to help mitigate supply-chain risks, ensuring the reliability and sustainability of vaccine sources; introducing a new Electronic Consent Form feature through eHealth, which enables members of the public to submit their e-consent forms for the SIVSOP and the VSS via the eHealth mobile application, facilitating public participation in the vaccination programmes and streamlining the administrative procedures for healthcare service providers and schools; increasing the number of influenza vaccine doses to 300 000 for the Pilot Scheme while expanding the eligibility groups of doctors to further enhance the stability of the vaccine supply in the private market;and strengthening the mobilisation of community resources and collaborations with more units in promoting and arranging vaccination activities in the community to jointly expand the protection barrier in society."
For more details, members of the public may call the CHP at 2125 2125 or visit theVaccination Schemes page.
Secretary for Health receives seasonal influenza vaccination Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Secretary for Health receives seasonal influenza vaccination Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Secretary for Health receives seasonal influenza vaccination Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Secretary for Health receives seasonal influenza vaccination Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Secretary for Health receives seasonal influenza vaccination Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Secretary for Health receives seasonal influenza vaccination Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
