HK$8 million haul of suspected cocaine found floating in sea off Hong Kong beach, 5 days after HK$19 million worth of drug discovered at different spot
The spokesman said the packages carried eight slabs of what appeared to be an illegal drug with a combined weight of 8kg and an estimated street value of HK$8 million.
The spokesman revealed the seized drugs were suspected to be cocaine.
He said officers searched the shoreline in the area, but nothing else was found.
Officers from the force’s narcotics bureau are investigating the case. So far, no one has been arrested.
Last Thursday, 19 packages of cocaine worth HK$19 million were found near the shore and a shark prevention net at Chung Hom Kok Beach in Stanley in Southern district.
Police cordoned off the beach and called in bomb experts as the parcels had labels that read “TNT”, which could stand for the explosive chemical compound trinitrotoluene.
The force said an examination by explosive ordnance disposal bureau personnel revealed the packages carried 19 slabs of what appeared to be cocaine.
Provisional figures show seizures of the five major illegal drugs – cocaine, cannabis, methamphetamine, heroin and ketamine – rose by 68 per cent to 13.29 tonnes last year from 7.9 tonnes in 2022.
Hong Kong police seize HK$19 million in cocaine that washed up on beach
The amount of cocaine seized by police and customs in 2023 increased by 55.8 per cent to 3.53 tonnes from 2.27 tonnes uncovered the year before.
In December, customs officers seized a record HK$490 million worth of liquid cocaine disguised as white wine that arrived in an ocean container sent from Brazil.
The haul was hidden in a shipment of 706 boxes of red and white wine, as well as juice, that arrived in the city on December 19. Two local men were arrested in connection with the case.
Signs of resealing were found on 37 of the 706 wine boxes. Each of the 37 boxes was supposed to contain four three-litre white wine bags, but samples tested positive for cocaine.