Hong Kong police arrest taxi driver for alleged drug trafficking after 6km chase

A Hong Kong taxi driver has been arrested on suspicion of drug trafficking after leading police on a 6km (3.7 mile) car chase from Sha Tin to Lai Chi Kok.

The pursuit ended at around 5am on Tuesday when the 56-year-old man’s taxi was intercepted on Tsing Sha Highway near Lai Chi Kok Reception Centre, a maximum-security prison. Officers found 33 packs of suspected cocaine worth HK$11,800 (US$12,752) in the vehicle.

A source said officers from the New Territories South Emergency Unit saw the taxi travelling in a zigzag manner at the junction of Lion Rock Tunnel Road and Tai Chung Kiu Road in Sha Tin.

“Officers signalled the driver to stop, but the man ignored them and continued driving towards Tai Wai along Lion Rock Tunnel Road,” the insider said.

Police gave chase and eventually intercepted the taxi on the highway’s outer lane. The two locations are about 6.7km apart.

“In the vehicle, officers seized 33 packs, weighing 15.74 grams in total, of what appeared to be cocaine with an estimated street value of HK$11,800,” police said.

Officers apprehended the taxi driver on suspicion of trafficking in a dangerous drug – an offence punishable by up to life in prison.