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The heroin was hidden in packs of coconut powder. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Seven held as Hong Kong police seize HK$64 million worth of heroin hidden in coconut powder packs from Thailand

  • Five men and two women, aged between 24 and 48, including the alleged mastermind of the syndicate and his wife, arrested
  • Officers from narcotics bureau find about 41kg of suspected heroin in 600 coconut powder packs shipped from Thailand
Hong Kong police say they have smashed a transnational drug trafficking syndicate, seizing heroin worth more than HK$64 million (US$8.2 million) that was hidden in coconut powder food packages shipped from Thailand.

Five men and two women, aged between 24 and 48, including the alleged mastermind of the syndicate and his wife, were arrested for offences including conspiracy to traffic in dangerous drugs, trafficking in dangerous drugs and money laundering.

Officers from the narcotics bureau found about 41.4kg of suspected heroin in 600 coconut powder packages in an operation on Thursday.

Police display some of the items seized during their operation. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Police said the syndicate had planned to transport the packages from a warehouse in Yuen Long to a public housing flat in Tin Shui Wai, where two members would extract the heroin.

Not only did the heroin look like coconut powder, police said, the strong scent from the foodstuff would make the authorities less suspicious.

Hong Kong police arrest 15, smashing triad gang tied to burglaries, drug dealing

Those arrested included two drivers responsible for transporting the drugs, two members who guarded the warehouse and one person who was responsible for keeping watch.

The alleged mastermind, 48, had a triad background and was believed to be unemployed, police said.

His wife was arrested on suspicion of money laundering.

Superintendent Raymond Chou (centre) and narcotics bureau colleagues. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

“[He] reported that he lives in a public housing estate, but he actually lives in a luxury flat, a private mansion [of more than 1,000 sq ft] in Ho Man Tin district,” Superintendent Raymond Chou of the narcotics bureau said.

Police also froze assets of the couple worth more than HK$4.3 million, including more than HK$1 million in cash, bank savings of about HK$1 million and two luxury cars.

Local authorities seized 268kg of heroin in the first eight months of this year, compared with 29kg in 2018 and 30kg in 2017.

Chou said the situation this year was worrying and could mean a resurgence of heroin use in the city.

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Seized heroin hidden in coconut powder
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