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Customs officers display smuggled iPhone 6 sets, which were seized at the customs of a port in Shenzhen. Photo: Reuters

Chinese man caught smuggling eight iPhone 6s across border ... in his underpants

Shenzhen customs have seized more than 1,800 iPhone 6s and iPhone 6 Plus

Apple

A man was caught with eight iPhone 6 units hidden in his underpants in a vain attempt to smuggle the gadgets across the Hong Kong border into mainland China.

The suspect, surnamed Zhou, was detained by customs officers at the Lo Wu border a day after the Apple gadgets officially launched in Hong Kong, the Southern Metropolis Daily reported on Wednesday.

Zhou was wearing three layers of underpants, where he placed the phones, when he was caught last Saturday.

He told authorities that he bought the iPhones in Hong Kong and planned to resell them in Shenzhen.

As of noon yesterday, Shenzhen customs authorities said they have seized more than 1,800 iPhone 6s and iPhone 6 Plus models at the border with Hong Kong since the phones hit the shelves last Friday.

Of that figure, 200 phone units were confiscated as illegal smuggled goods, while the remaining 1,600 were taxed or returned to Hong Kong.

READ MORE: Police seize 600 smuggled iPhone 6s as travellers cross Shenzhen border

Within the first three days after the phones launched, Shenzhen authorities confiscated 600 smuggled iPhone 6s.

Authorities in its Huanggang and Futian ports caught 36 travellers hiding hundreds of phones, in total, in their luggage or vehicles, China News Service reported. They also found nearly 1,000 items of packaging and accessories for the iPhone 6 and the larger model iPhone 6 Plus.

Most of those caught were young travellers, some of whom confessed that the phones were bound for sale in an electronics market.

One 17-year-old traveller, who was dressed like a student, arrived at Futian port carrying a large box of tea leaves on September 19 – the first day that the phones went on sale in Hong Kong – but stirred authorities’ suspicion when he avoided X-ray scanners.

He was pulled aside for a routine inspection, and officers found there were no tea leaves in the box but three brand-new iPhone 6 units, the report said.

On the morning of September 21, a minivan entering Huanggang port was also found hiding six new iPhone 6 units behind the seats, in the arm rest and storage compartment.

That same evening, customs officers also caught four more travellers smuggling the new smartphones, which they concealed within paper boxes of pasta, coffee, cream pies and toothpaste. They piled food on top of the phones to hide them.

The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus launched in Hong Kong and eight other markets last Thursday, but left out mainland China in its rollout. This pushed the black-market price of the gadgets to as high as 15,000 yuan (HK$18,900), according to mainland media.

Officials charge heavy duties of up to 50 per cent on electronics, but self-use items are exempted from the tax.

Additional reporting by Mimi Lau

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