Hong Kong Customs yesterday (April 8) successfully made its application to the District Court for a confiscation order under the Organized and Serious Crimes Ordinance (OSCO) to confiscate crime proceeds of about $3.7 million from a male cannabis trafficker.
Customs officers arrested the man in Yuen Long in March 2017 and a Restraint Order was granted by the High Court in April 2018 to restrain his assets worth about $3.7 million. He was later sentenced to 50 months' imprisonment at the District Court in November 2018 following his conviction for contravention of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance (DDO) and the OSCO.
Under the confiscation order granted yesterday, an additional 39 months' imprisonment will be imposed if the man fails to comply with the order.
Customs welcomes the order granted by the court. The sentence imposed upon the man for trafficking in cannabis and money laundering as well as the confiscation of crime proceeds would send a deterrent message to potential offenders and the public that trafficking in cannabis, like other dangerous drugs, is a serious crime in Hong Kong.
Under the DDO, trafficking in a dangerous drug is a serious offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $5 million and life imprisonment.
Under the OSCO, a person commits an offence if he deals with any property knowing or having reasonable grounds to believe that such property in whole or in part directly or indirectly represents any person's proceeds of an indictable offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $5 million and imprisonment for 14 years.
Members of the public may report any suspected violations of the DDO or the OSCO to Customs' 24-hour hotline 2545 6182 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk).
Ends/Tuesday, April 9, 2019