Hong Kong customs arrests man flying from Netherlands over HK$1.6 million ketamine haul
- Customs says 64-year-old businessman arrested after officers discovered drugs hidden in bottles said to contain health supplement
Hong Kong customs officers have arrested a 64-year-old businessman who arrived at the city’s airport from the Netherlands in connection with a HK$1.6 million (US$205,300) haul of ketamine hidden in bottles of protein supplement.
A source said on Wednesday that the man was stopped two days earlier for inspection after he flew to the city from Amsterdam, with a stop-off in Helsinki, Finland.
The insider said five plastic bottles said to contain creatine and whey protein were found in the man’s check-in luggage.
Senior Inspector Kong Kin-kit of the customs’ drug investigation bureau said the man’s check-in luggage was flagged as suspicious during an X-ray test as officers found signs that the bottles had been tampered with.
“The origin of the health products did not match the traveller’s country of departure, which aroused our suspicion,” he added.
Kong said officers opened the bottles and found 3.3kg (7.3lbs) of suspected ketamine with an estimated street value of HK$1.6 million.