Seven people were caught after attempting to pass through a customs checkpoint at the Chinese border with 500 phones taped to their bodies.
The 500 phones that were found were either iPhones or Samsung Galaxy S7 Edges. The total value of the phones was over 1.3 million yuan.
Channel News Asia reports that Shenzhen Huanggang checkpoint customs officers noticed a man in his forties or fifties walking suspiciously. An alarm was triggered after he walked through a metal detector. Authorities were then alerted to the matter, finding 16 mobile phones taped to his belt and 29 phones taped to his legs.
A further six men were found with dozens of phones also taped to themselves. Their arrest was made within five minutes of the first suspect’s arrest.
All of the suspects that were arrested have prior histories of smuggling illegal goods.
The checkpoint in question borders China with Hong Kong.