Local woman convicted and jailed 63 months for illegal export and possession of pharmaceutical products and money laundering
A local woman was sentenced to 63 months' imprisonment by the District Court yesterday (September 23) for illegal export and possession of controlled pharmaceutical products and dealing with property known or believed to represent proceeds of an indictable offence (commonly known as money laundering), in contravention of the Import and Export Ordinance (IEO), the Trade Descriptions Ordinance (TDO), the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance (PPO), and the Organized and Serious Crimes Ordinance (OSCO).
Between September and October 2021, Hong Kong Customs seized approximately 1.6 million tablets of controlled pharmaceutical products, some of which were found to be counterfeit, with an estimated market value of about $55 million, at Hong Kong International Airport, an industrial unit in Hung Hom, and a logistics service centre in Sheung Wan. Subsequent investigation revealed that the woman had recruited individuals to pack and post the pharmaceutical products, and had rented an industrial unit to facilitate the operation of the offences.
The woman received bank transfers and cash deposits from unidentifiable sources through her personal bank accounts, laundering a total of $15 million in crime proceeds. Furthermore, her personal accounts were utilised to support the syndicate's operations, including payments for the individuals for packing and delivery of the pharmaceutical products and payments of the postage fees for the parcels.
Customs welcomes the sentence. The custodial sentence has imposed a considerable deterrent effect and reflects the seriousness of illegal exports of controlled pharmaceutical products and counterfeit goods, as well as money laundering offences.
Additionally, the prosecution applied to the court under the OSCO for a Confiscation Order against the woman's frozen assets totalling approximately $470,000.
Under the IEO, any person who exports pharmaceutical products and medicines without a valid export licence commits an offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $500,000 and imprisonment for two years.
Under the PPO, 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.
Under the TDO, any person who imports, exports, sells, or possesses for sale counterfeit goods commits an offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $500,000 and imprisonment for five years.
Under the OSCO, a person commits an offence if he or she deals with any property knowing or having reasonable grounds to believe that such property, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly represents any person's proceeds of an indictable offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $5 million and imprisonment for 14 years while the crime proceeds are also subject to confiscation.
Members of the public may report any suspected violation of the above-mentioned ordinances 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/en/).
A local woman was sentenced to 63 months' imprisonment by the District Court yesterday (September 23) for illegal export and possession of controlled pharmaceutical products and dealing with property known or believed to represent proceeds of an indictable offence (commonly known as money laundering), in contravention of the Import and Export Ordinance, the Trade Descriptions Ordinance, the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance, and the Organized and Serious Crimes Ordinance. Photo shows the controlled pharmaceutical products seized. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
SITI attends Applied Artificial Intelligence Conference 2026 in Austria
The Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Professor Sun Dong, began his visit to Vienna, Austria, on September 24 (Vienna time). In his keynote speech at the Applied Artificial Intelligence Conference 2026, he said that Hong Kong has elevated AI into a core industry and is emerging as one of the world's most dynamic innovation and technology (I&T) centres. Like Austria, Hong Kong sees AI as key to economic competitiveness, research excellence and public service modernisation, and pursues "industries for AI" and "AI for industries". Professor Sun invited Austria to partner in shaping AI's next chapter.
Professor Sun highlighted that this push is backed by a strong research base and basic infrastructure. The InnoHK research clusters connects over 30 leading universities and institutes across 12 economies, including the University of Oxford, Stanford University and the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, while the Sandy Ridge Data Facility Cluster will provide computing power of 180 000 PFLOPS by 2032—a 36-fold increase. With a robust legal framework, low tax regime, strong intellectual property protection, ease of capital raising and world-class logistics, Hong Kong offers European enterprises a trusted gateway to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the broader Asia-Pacific.
He added that Hong Kong is also advancing ambitious I&T infrastructure. The Hetao Hong Kong Park, opened last December, is a world-class I&T hub connecting the Mainland and the world; while the San Tin Technopole is Hong Kong's flagship I&T industries base. Together, they link global technology talent and enterprises with the GBA's market and supply chain. He also stressed that, after the announcement of the First Five-Year Plan for Economic and Social Development of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (2026-2030) and the Chief Executive's 2026 Policy Address, the Government's commitment to accelerating AI adoption, promoting industry upgrade and regulating AI ethics is firmer than ever.
During the Conference, Professor Sun had a brief exchange with start-ups from the Hong Kong Science Park delegation participating in the Conference to learn about their innovative solutions.
In addition, Professor Sun met with the Federal Minister of Innovation, Mobility, and Infrastructureof the Republic of Austria, Mr Peter Hanke, and the President of the Vienna Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Ms Margarete Kriz-Zwittkovits, to discuss how Hong Kong and Austria can expand exchanges on start-ups and innovation, strengthen co-operation in the application of AI and industrial digitalisation, and establish new connections between Austrian enterprises and Hong Kong's innovation ecosystem in order to deepen existing innovation partnerships. Professor Sun stated that as two externally oriented economies renowned for their international connections, Hong Kong and Austria have numerous opportunities for further collaboration. Austria is a leading hub for professional engineering, green technology, and industrial innovation in Europe, whilst Hong Kong is a premier gateway to high-growth markets in the Chinese Mainland and Asia. He welcomed Austrian enterprises to leverage Hong Kong's financial platform and market connections to expand into Asian markets, and encouraged enterprises from the Mainland and Hong Kong to invest and explore opportunities in Austria as well.
Professor Sun met with the Vice President of the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber, Mr Wolfgang Hesoun, to brief him on Hong Kong's latest I&T developments and opportunities, and to exchange views on shared priorities and exploring new avenues for co-operation in innovation and trade.
Professor Sun also visited the Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT) and toured its Technology Experience Lab to learn about the applied research institution's professional research and development capabilities in AI, digital transformation, molecular diagnostics, and industry-oriented applications. The AIT is Austria's largest non-university research and technology organisation.
In the evening, Professor Sun attended the National Day reception hosted by the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the Republic of Austria, during which he exchanged views with the Chargé d'Affaires a.i. of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the Republic of Austria, Mr Wang Tao, and the Permanent Representative and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People's Republic of China to the United Nations Office at Vienna and Other International Organizations in Vienna, Mr Li Song, on strengthening I&T collaboration between Hong Kong and Austria.
Professor Sun will return to Hong Kong on September 25 (Vienna time).
SITI attends Applied Artificial Intelligence Conference 2026 in Austria Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
SITI attends Applied Artificial Intelligence Conference 2026 in Austria Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
SITI attends Applied Artificial Intelligence Conference 2026 in Austria Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
SITI attends Applied Artificial Intelligence Conference 2026 in Austria Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
SITI attends Applied Artificial Intelligence Conference 2026 in Austria Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
SITI attends Applied Artificial Intelligence Conference 2026 in Austria Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
SITI attends Applied Artificial Intelligence Conference 2026 in Austria Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
SITI attends Applied Artificial Intelligence Conference 2026 in Austria Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
SITI attends Applied Artificial Intelligence Conference 2026 in Austria Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
SITI attends Applied Artificial Intelligence Conference 2026 in Austria Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
