CityU student jailed seven years by mainland court for smuggling fake firearms across border
Defendant was paid HK$500 by parallel traders to take 12 items from Hong Kong to Shenzhen
A university student from Hong Kong has been jailed for seven years by a mainland court for smuggling imitation firearms across the border.
The 23-year-old City University student was found by Shenzhen customs to have illegally brought in 12 imitation items and was arrested on July 27, Guangzhou Daily reported on Wednesday.
The Shenzhen Municipal Intermediate People’s Court handed down the seven-year imprisonment term and a fine of 20,000 yuan (HK$22,600) in December.
The court heard that the student had been recruited to help parallel traders, who buy their stock tax free in Hong Kong and resell it in mainland China at a profit, to take the haul from Hong Kong to Shenzhen for a reward of HK$500.
The report said he had filed an appeal, claiming that he had been told he was just delivering electronic parts.
The court also heard that the student was introduced to the traders by a former classmate, with both of them seeking to make some money by bringing goods into mainland.