A 16-year-old boy from Hong Kong was hired by a gang to sell drugs in Macau, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Ho Chan Nam said during a special press conference yesterday.
The suspect, surnamed Tam, was arrested on Monday night outside a hotel in the city centre. The unemployed teenager, who has dropped out of school, told the police that he had been hired by the gang for a payment of HK$1,000 per day as he needed money, Ho said.
According to Ho, the Judiciary Police were recently tipped off that someone had been hired by a Hong Kong gang to sell drugs in Macau. After investigating, PJ officers identified Tam as the suspected drug pusher.
According to Ho, Tam came to Macau on Monday afternoon and stayed in the hotel in the city centre. PJ officers put Tam under surveillance.
At around 10 p.m. on Monday, PJ officers saw Tam leaving the hotel, suspecting that he was going to sell drugs, they intercepted him, Ho said.
The police found 1.45 grammes of cocaine on the boy and 14.33 grammes in his guestroom. The police also seized HK$10,000 and 3,000 patacas in cash from Tam that he had collected from drug users during previous drug-selling activities, according to Ho.
In the guestroom, the police also seized an electronic scale and tools for packaging drugs, Ho said.
Ho said that the cocaine seized from Tam has a street value of 47,000 patacas.
Under questioning, Tam admitted that he had been hired by a Hong Kong gang to sell drugs in Macau so that he could make a quick buck as he was short of money to cover his daily expenses, according to Ho.
Tam told the police that he was paid HK$1,000 per day by the gang and that he primarily sold drugs to customers at night entertainment venues, Ho said.
According to Ho, Tam told the police that he received the drugs from someone after arriving in Macau and then sold them to drug users.
The police are looking for other suspects in the case, including those who handed the drugs to Tam in Macau, according to Ho.
Tam has been transferred to the Public Prosecution Office (MP) for further questioning and possible arraignment on a drug-trafficking charge.
The age of criminal responsibility in Macau is 16.
Cocaine, cash, and other evidence seized by the police are displayed in a pressroom of the PJ headquarters yesterday. Photos: Iong Tat Choi
Judiciary Police (PJ) officers escort the hooded drug-trafficking suspect from Hong Kong to a PJ vehicle outside the PJ headquarters in Zape yesterday.
