The Customs & Excise Department gave a review of its work and development last year, which shows remarkable enforcement efficiency and practical efforts dedicated to the safeguarding of national security.

In 2021, a total of 8,323 cases was detected by the department with 5,143 people arrested, an increase of 3% and 26% compared to 2020. The total seizure value increased 73% to $6.27 billion.

About 52% of the cases are related to illicit cigarettes, followed by cases related to dangerous drugs and intellectual property rights protection.

Regarding dangerous drugs, the total seizure in 2021 surged 9% from 2020 to 3,800kg. Seven cases with seizure value at $100 million or above each were detected. In the biggest case, about 260kg of cocaine with a market value of $300 million were seized.

In 2021, 233 cases of importing or exporting unmanifested cargo under the Import & Export Ordinance were detected, an increase of 33% from 2020. Four cases with seizure value of $100 million or above each were detected. In a record-hitting case, goods worth $1.2 billion were seized.

Overall, Mainland-Hong Kong cases accounted for around 94% of the grand total.

In response to the development of the COVID-19 epidemic, the department launched a large-scale city-wide special operation on January 27, 2020.

Up to December 31, 2021, investigations into 39 cases under the Trade Descriptions Ordinance and the Consumer Goods Safety Ordinance were launched, with 90 arrests and seizures of 38.54 million surgical masks and other virus-protective products worth $144 million.