Customs officers seized about 87 kilograms of suspected cannabis buds, with an estimated market value of about HK$18 million, at Hong Kong International Airport on 10 March 2024.[1][2] The case involved two male passengers, aged 67 and 48, who had arrived that day from Vancouver, Canada, via Tokyo, Japan.[1][2] Officers found the buds concealed in the men’s respective checked-in luggage during customs clearance.[1][2]

Both men were arrested and jointly charged with one count of trafficking in a dangerous drug.[1][2] They were due to appear at the West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts the next day, 13 March.[1][2] Customs described the case as the largest passenger cannabis trafficking case detected at the airport in the past decade.[1][2] Under the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, trafficking in a dangerous drug carries a maximum penalty of a HK$5 million fine and life imprisonment.[1][2]