Hong Kong customs officers on Friday said they had seized HK$62 million (US$7.9 million) worth of smuggled cigarettes from a ship that claimed to be transporting dried tapioca from Cambodia.
Acting senior investigator Chiu Kai-wing of the Customs and Excise Department said suspicions about the cargo were aroused after discrepancies were found in the shipping documents and containers on board the vessel that were checked on Tuesday.
Chiu explained tapioca was usually imported from Thailand or Vietnam and it was “rare” to see it coming from Cambodia.
