Hong Kong police vow no mercy for transit passengers carrying checked-in stun guns
Officer’s comment comes after magistrate asked whether luggage screening had become too strict and weapons would never be seen on city streets
Police have vowed to maintain a zero-tolerance policy on unlicensed weapons – the bulk of them stun guns for personal protection – found in transit luggage at the airport.
The pledge comes a month after a magistrate expressed concern that screening had become too strict and many of the weapons in cases he had dealt with would never come anywhere near the streets of the city.
READ MORE: Tourists with stun guns caught unaware at airport
It is understood screening staff from the Aviation Security Company (Avseco), who are responsible for security at the airport, are paid a HK$500-a-time bonus for spotting weapons in luggage. But it is unclear if this has anything to do with the increasing number of cases.
The vast bulk of stun guns are found in the check-in bags of transit passengers and therefore do not circulate in the community.
Chief Inspector Kelvin Ip Chun-wing of the airport police district crime unit said there was no discretion over the offence, even though many arrested travellers were professionals like lawyers and doctors who were carrying the devices for self-protection.
“As much as I want to give them mercy, we are not allowed to do so as possession of unlicensed arms is a serious offence,” said Ip.
“Their excuses would bring them a light sentence, but they are not immune from arrest and prosecution because they did bring in the devices without a Hong Kong licence.”
Last month acting principal magistrate Cheang Kei-hong, handling a case in Tsuen Wan Court, expressed concern that baggage screening was too strict for transit visitors.
Cheang said the regulation was meant to prevent forbidden weapons from being brought into the city.
READ MORE: Number of people trying to smuggle weapons through Hong Kong airport triples
An Argentinian who was flying to the United States via Hong Kong was given “a light fine” of HK$800 after a stun gun was seized from her check-in luggage.
In 2014 and 2015, 346 and 341 people were arrested with stun guns in their bags compared with 36 arrests in 2011.
The total number of crimes reported at the airport district jumped to 1,063 in 2014 incidents from 750 in 2012.In 2011, there were 860 crimes.
The figures sparked concerns about the standards of aviation security at the airport after Avseco’s former head, Sidney Chau Foo-cheong, left amid allegations of corruption in August 2013.
Under the Firearms and Ammunition Ordinance, it is an offence to possess a stun device without a licence in Hong Kong. Convicted offenders including transit passengers are liable to a maximum fine of HK$100,000 and 14 years in prison.
Convicted offenders are mostly fined from HK$500 to HK$10,000, with a few being jailed for a few days.
“A conviction would leave the offender with a criminal record in Hong Kong despite a light sentence,” Ip noted.
It is understood that around 80 arrested travellers were from the Philippines, where electric stun devices are popular and legal.
The force says it will step up liaison with consulates of Southeast Asian countries to remind their nationals not to bring in stun guns.
