Smugglers' tunnels found under Hong Kong border

HONG KONG - Seven members of an electronics smuggling gang have been arrested for digging two tunnels under the tightly policed border between Hong Kong and China, a newspaper reported today.

The South China Morning Post quoted Chinese customs officials as saying the gang had rented an apartment in May in the southern city of Shenzhen, close to the fenced boundary, and spent nearly two weeks digging a tunnel that was 20m long and 55cm wide.

The newspaper said gang members carried mobile phones and computer chips as they crawled through the muddy, narrow tunnel that linked sewers on both sides of the border.

Customs officers reportedly confiscated 1.56 million yuan ($314,000) worth of goods in the gang's hideout, including 120,000 computer chips and 803 mobile phones.

Another 40m tunnel was found close by but it had been abandoned because gang members couldn't stand the noxious fumes from a nearby sewer, according to the report.

- REUTERS