A cross-border smuggling syndicate that used a 300-metre fishing line to ferry gadgets from Hong Kong to Shenzhen has been smashed in a joint operation by customs officers from both sides of the border.
Its alleged mastermind, a Hong Kong man who was released from jail only last month after being convicted for identical crimes three years ago, was arrested with five mainlanders in Shenzhen on Wednesday, a customs official said yesterday.
Law enforcers confiscated 100 Apple iPad2s and iPhone4s valued at more than HK$300,000 at the pick-up point in Shenzhen. Equipment, including a giant home-made conveyance wheel and a fishing line, was also seized.
Hong Kong customs officers are looking for two other smugglers who fled in a seven-seater car from the uploading site in Sha Tau Kok, Hong Kong.
A Hong Kong customs official said the investigation indicated that the syndicate started operating about two weeks ago, days after its mastermind was released from jail in Hong Kong.
'Investigations showed that smugglers operated in the small hours of each morning in an attempt to avoid detection,' the officer said. 'A black nylon bag containing smuggled goods was tied to the black fishing line and pulled across the border. It is very hard to discover at night.'