Drug dealers offering Hong Kong youngsters free narcotics to recruit them as traffickers, police warn
- Police wrap up two-week operation that led to 107 arrests, with youngest suspect being 14 years old
- ‘When young people become unable to afford illegal drugs, they subsequently become tools for drug dealers to traffic narcotics,’ police warn
Hong Kong drug dealers are offering teenagers as young as 14 free narcotics, getting them hooked and then recruiting them as traffickers, police have warned.
Acting chief inspector Chu Siu-lun of the force’s narcotics bureau also revealed on Friday that a two-week operation led to 107 arrests and the seizure of HK$27 million (US$3.45 million) worth of illegal drugs.
The youngest suspect caught in the operation, which ran from December 20 to Wednesday, was a 14-year-old girl who was detained on suspicion of possessing cannabis oil and an electronic smoking device, he said. Chu said a preliminary investigation suggested the cannabis oil was given to the teenager for free.
“It is a disgraceful common practice for drug dealers to recruit young people by providing them with free narcotics, leading them to develop drug addictions,” he said.
“When young people become unable to afford illegal drugs, they subsequently become tools for drug dealers to traffic narcotics and face their own legal consequences.”
He warned that young people would have to bear the legal consequences once convicted and have a criminal record for life.
In Hong Kong, trafficking in a dangerous drug is punishable by up to life in prison and a HK$5 million fine.
A force insider said dealers were known to recruit youngsters into drug trafficking using peer referrals, but they also targeted those who hung around in playgrounds at public housing estates and parks at night.
“They are enticed with free drugs from their friends. This tactic is employed to ensure they can be easily manipulated once they develop a drug addiction,” the source said.
“Subsequently, they are coerced into taking part in drug-trafficking activities and become scapegoats for drug dealers.”
The source said some young people were paid as low as hundreds of dollars for drug deliveries.
As part of the citywide operation code-named “Tailbacker”, police focused on drug-related offences, especially those involving the use of young people as traffickers.
Hong Kong police arrest 2, seize over HK$5 million worth of narcotics in flat raid
According to the force, 107 people were arrested in connection with 80 cases that involved offences such as the manufacturing, trafficking and possession of drugs.
Officers also seized 73kg (160.9lbs) of illegal drugs, including cocaine, crystal meth, cannabis, heroin and ketamine. The haul had an estimated street value of HK$27 million.
Chu said 12 suspects were aged between 14 and 20, with most of them detained on suspicion of trafficking in dangerous drugs and possession of illegal substances.
He warned that police would apply to the courts for severe sentences for those who exploited young people to commit drug-related crimes.
He said police had noticed a 25 per cent decrease in drug-related arrests involving those aged 20 and below in the first half last year compared with the same period in 2022, attributing the drop to enhanced law enforcement efforts and educational campaigns.
Still, Chu added: “One case is already too many, especially when it involves the future pillar of society – the youth.”
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In the first half of 2022, nine male students, all aged 13 or 14, were “exploited by drug syndicates” and arrested on suspicion of trafficking in illegal substances. The force highlighted the cases in the second half of 2022 while announcing half-year crime statistics, with an 18 per cent decrease in the number of arrests among young people for various offences.
In January last year, customs officers arrested three teenage boys in connection with a HK$3 million heroin seizure airmailed into the city from Thailand. Two were brothers, aged 14 and 15, while the third boy, 14, was a classmate of the younger sibling.
Chu urged parents to pay close attention to whether their children had any unusual sources of income.
“If there are any suspicions, it is essential to intervene proactively, seek help promptly and collaborate with police in the fight against drugs,” he added.
Provisional figures showed that seizures of the five major illegal drugs – cocaine, cannabis, methamphetamine, heroin and ketamine – in the first 10 months of last year doubled to 10.8 tonnes from 5.3 tonnes over the same period in 2022.
The amount of ketamine seized by police and customs between January and October last year had reached 1,984kg, a 294 per cent rise from the 503kg uncovered over the same period in 2022.
Authorities also seized 2,607kg of cocaine in the first 10 months in 2023, an increase of 167 per cent from the 976kg found the year before.
