Police seize HK$10 million in illegal cigarettes after chasing overloaded truck in northern Hong Kong
- Officers became suspicious when vehicle was driving slowly on Fanling Highway near Lok Ma Chau border checkpoint
- As police gave chase, driver zigzagged along roads and ran red lights before finally coming to a stop
A police chase of an overloaded truck along a northern Hong Kong highway ended with the arrest of the driver and the seizure of about HK$10 million (US$1.29 million) worth of contraband cigarettes in the early hours of Wednesday.
Officers found a total of 3.6 million contraband cigarettes, including 2.5 million heat-not-burn ones, marking the biggest single haul of the non-combusted tobacco in four years.
Police were still searching in the afternoon for a male passenger who managed to flee the scene.
The pursuit began at around 12.30am when officers from the New Territories North traffic unit spotted the vehicle driving slowly on Fanling Highway near the Lok Ma Chau border checkpoint. Officers suspected the vehicle was overloaded with goods.
According to the force, the driver ignored orders to pull over and accelerated. Police gave chase and called for reinforcements. The truck turned onto Kwu Tung Road, then Castle Peak Road and onto San Tin Highway bound for Yuen Long.