Oil smugglers see $200m frozen in slick customs op

Tough laws designed to hit gangland crime bosses where it hurts have been used for the first time to freeze the assets of a multi-million dollar cross-border diesel-smuggling syndicate.

Tough laws designed to hit gangland crime bosses where it hurts have been used for the first time to freeze the assets of a multi-million dollar cross-border diesel-smuggling syndicate.

Customs Department chiefs have invoked the Organized and Serious Crimes Ordinance to freeze HK$200 million of the smuggling gang’s assets, including bank accounts, property and cars.

“Freezing their assets means we impose a more stringent punishment,” customs special task force group head Chong Wai-ming said. “If we don’t, the people involved can spend their money and enjoy their ill-gotten gains when they are released from jail. This stops them from doing so.”

Mainland and Hong Kong customs had been investigating the syndicate of several Hong Kong companies since the end of last year.

The companies bought dyed diesel – which is exclusively for the Hong Kong marine market and not subject to SAR duty – from Hong Kong companies and smuggled it to the mainland using fishing boats with enlarged oil tanks.

The dye would then be taken out and the fuel sold as normal diesel in bulk to petrol stations there.

Investigators estimate 130 million liters of dyed diesel had been smuggled over three months.

Intelligence bureau head Kwok Ngan-ping said the incentive to smuggle dyed oil was great because of the price difference.

Dyed fuel is sold at around HK$4 (5 yuan) per liter, while diesel in the mainland is sold for around 7 yuan per liter.

“This is about a two-dollar difference per liter of oil. The incentive for smuggling is, therefore, the huge profit,” Kwok said.

Mainland customs mounted an operation on January 31 in Shenzhen, Huizhou and Heyuan, seizing 600,000 liters of dyed oil and more than 4 million yuan, as well as arresting 134 people.

With the help of mainland customs, Hong Kong then instigated “Operation Bottsand” on May 3.

They arrested 19 people after searching 19 premises in a territory-wide operation.

Oil barges, offices and homes were raided in a series of swoops.

Those arrested include the suspected mastermind, company directors and oil barge workers.

Smuggling proceeds of HK$200 million worth of assets were also uncovered and frozen.

“As the supply of oil was from Hong Kong, but the distribution was in the mainland, smashing the syndicate needed a lot of cooperation,” Kwok said.

All those arrested have been released on bail.