Hong Kong officials seize heroin hidden in canned fruits imported from Thailand

Hong Kong’s Custom Department arrested two suspects on Monday after finding 22 kilograms of heroin in canned fruits shipped from Thailand.

The cargo was delivered to a seaport in Hong Kong last Thursday and was declared as 40 boxes of canned rambutan and lychee. Officers searched the shipment and found that more than 72 cans from three of the boxes were packed with heroin. Reports say, in total, 22 kilograms of heroin with a street value of 125 million baht was seized. Officers are still investigating.

In another transnational drug bust involving heroin shipped from Thailand, more than 446.8 kilograms of heroin hidden in imported wood from a Thai lumber factory was seized in Taiwan.

Many other countries have reported illegal drug shipments from Thailand this year including South Korea, Australia, and especially Hong Kong. Drugs have been found hidden in snack packages, instant noodles, frozen food, wood, paint buckets, motorcycle parts, notebooks, picture frames, and even in a package of holy cloth or Pha Yant.

According to Thai media, most of the illegal drugs are shipped out of Thailand because the restrictions are not as strict as sending packages by air. Shipping container prices have also gone down during the pandemic.

SOURCES: Khaosod | The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region | Dailynews