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Hong Kong Customs officers seized 23,000 litres of unmanifested marked oil, worth about $115,000, in an anti-smuggling operation last night (November 7).
At about 11.45pm, customs officers intercepted a departing local fishing vessel in the waters off Lung Kwu Tan for a search. They uncovered 23,000 litres of unmanifested marked oil inside the under-deck tanks of the vessel.
Two Mainland men, aged 40 and 51, were arrested. They will later be charged with ˇ§attempting to export unmanifested cargoˇ¨.
A spokesman for the Customs and Excise Department today (November 8) stressed that the department would continue its vigorous enforcement action against cross-boundary smuggling activities.
Under the Import and Export Ordinance, any person found guilty of "attempting to export unmanifested cargo" is liable on conviction to a fine of $2 million and imprisonment for seven years. The vessel involved will also be confiscated.
Ends/Thursday, November 8, 2007
Issued at HKT 15:03
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