Mystery man remains missing

Police seized about 300 kg of high-quality cocaine worth HK$300 million at a village house Monday. The owner of the house and his family remain in custody.

Police officers investigating a missing persons case came to the three-storey house in Tai Po Tin village and later a sniffer dog found the cocaine, stored in 26 boxes, on the third floor.

According to a Chinese newspaper, the police were looking for a Hong Kong immigrant to the Netherlands, surnamed Cheung who took a taxi to the village last week and hadn't been seen since.

Jail terms for trafficking drug

Four men received 25-year jail sentences at the High Court Monday for attempting to traffic cocaine with a street value of more than HK$9 million.

The court heard that customs and excise officers at the airport found 25 packets of cocaine, totaling 6.6 kg, packed in 20 boxes of cocoa powder from Amsterdam on February 19 last year. The officers swapped baking soda for the illicit drugs and followed a truck picking up the consignment.

The four defendants - Chan Chu-leung, Ng Ho-yin, Hui Yiu-mo and Yim Chi-ho - took different roles in repackaging and transporting the substitute cocaine.

Heavy holiday traffic expected

The Immigration Department has estimated that 2.95 million passengers will pass through land, sea and air control points in and out of Hong Kong during the upcoming Labor Day holiday, representing an increase of 5 percent over the corresponding holiday period last year.

Between April 30 and May 3, about 1.07 million passengers - an average of about 267,000 per day - will pass through Lo Wu control point. For inbound traffic, the busiest day at Lo Wu control point is expected to be May 1 when about 140,000 passengers will arrive. Outbound traffic is also expected to be heavy on May 1, with about 160,000 people leaving Hong Kong.

During the same period, passenger traffic at Lok Ma Chau control point will also be heavy with a forecast of about 437,000 passengers - a daily average of about 109,000. The busiest day at Lok Ma Chau control point will be May 1 when both arrival and departure traffic will be very heavy.

Taxi groups propose fare hike

More than 10 associations representing New Territories taxi drivers and owners held a meeting Monday to call for an increase in fares. The representatives generally agreed that the flagfall charge for the first 2 km ought to be raised from the current HK$14.5 to HK$16. Some suggested the flagfall charge should be increased to HK$18 with extra charges for long-haul passengers, late-night rides and periods when the typhoon signal is raised.

The meeting followed a similar meeting by operators of urban taxis, who also called for fare increases to address increased fuel costs and insurance premiums.

No public funds for vet school

The University Grants Committee has rejected a proposal by the City University of Hong Kong (CityU) to set up a School of Veterinary Medicine (vet school) in Hong Kong with public funds.

A UGC spokesman said the cost of a veterinary science program is estimated to be around HK$500,000 per student per year. The funding to train 50 students under the program could be used to train 50 more doctors, or 150 nurses, or 200 engineers or 200 teachers per year.

China Daily

(HK Edition 04/27/2010 page1)