A foreign traveller was intercepted last month at the Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macao Bridge (HZMB) Zhuhai Port (immigration and customs checkpoint) for attempting of smuggle 2.51 grams of cannabis into the Chinese mainland, Zhuhai’s Gongbei Customs said in a statement yesterday.
The statement did not reveal the suspect’s nationality, merely describing him as a “foreign tourist”, nor any other personal information.
According to the statement, customs officers at the checkpoint’s arrival inspection hall noticed the male traveller acting nervously and walking rapidly through the green channel at around 12:00 p.m. on September 13.
Upon interception, officers discovered a sealed bag in the traveller’s right trouser pocket containing a black resinous mixture with leaf fragments resembling cannabis resin, weighing 2.8 grams gross.
Reagent testing at the scene yielded a positive result for cannabis, and subsequent laboratory analysis confirmed the presence of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)*, with a net weight of 2.51 grams. The case has been transferred to Gongbei Customs’ anti-smuggling department for further investigation, the statement said.
Gongbei Customs officers reaffirmed that under the Chinese mainland’s legal system, smuggling, selling, transporting, or manufacturing drugs –regardless of the quantity – results in criminal liability and punishment.
* Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the principal psychoactive chemical compound found in plants of the genus Cannabis (marijuana and hemp). THC is psychoactive, i.e., it produces euphoria (“high”), altered sensory perception, relaxation, and mood changes. Physiologically, it alters short-term memory formation. – Gemini
This undated handout photo provided by Zhuhai’s Gongbei Customs yesterday shows 2.8 grams (gross weight) of cannabis resin on an electronic scale and its rapid test result at the Zhuhai checkpoint of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB).
