Police and Customs arrested 14 people during a joint operation targeting suspected illegal activity in industrial buildings in Sham Shui Po, police said. The operation ran from 27 October to 2 November.
Searches of multiple units uncovered two suspected illegal gambling premises, a suspected illicit-cigarette storage site, a suspected prostitution venue and a suspected unlicensed massage parlour.
Officers seized about 120,000 untaxed cigarettes and about 26,200 alternative smoking products. Police estimated their total market value at about HK$600,000.
Nine of those arrested were charged, with their cases due before West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts on 5, 27 and 28 November. The other five were released on bail pending investigation.