Hong Kong Customs seizes cocaine at airport

Hong Kong Customs said Thursday that 8.4 kilograms of cocaine with an estimated street value of about 8.71 million HK dollars (about 1.12 million U.S. dollars) were seized at Hong Kong International Airport on April 3.

Hong Kong Customs officers intercepted a passenger arriving from Sao Paulo, Brazil, at the arrival hall of the airport on Wednesday afternoon. The officers found the cocaine soaked in the linings of two jackets and two quilts in the passenger's checked suitcase.

The arrested person, 46, will be charged with one count of trafficking in a dangerous drug and will appear at a local court on April 5.

Under the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, drug trafficking is a serious offence which carries maximum penalty of life imprisonment and a fine of 5 million HK dollars (644,000 U.S. dollars).