Hong Kong customs has made its largest seizure of protected agarwood in more than two decades, discovering one tonne (2,205lbs) of the tree bark worth HK$18 million (US$2.3 million) in a sea shipment from mainland China. The Customs and Excise Department said on Thursday that the haul, suspected to have been smuggled into the city from Vietnam via Guangdong province, was more than four times the amount of the endangered tree species seized between January 2020 and August 2024.
Acting Senior Superintendent Jason Lau Yuk-lung, who heads customs’ syndicate crimes investigation bureau, said the indirect route smugglers took was an attempt to evade detection by law enforcement. Lau said a 35-year-old woman, the director of a local trading company that was the consignee of the shipment, was arrested in connection with the case. Agarwood is an endangered species and is regulated under the Protection of Endangered Species of Animals and Plants Ordinance.
The protected tree wood has a distinct fragrance and is a symbol of luxury. Lau said the wood could be used to make expensive accessories, carvings and decorative items..