HCMC - Customs officers seized 418 second-hand mobile phones at HCMC-based Tan Son Nhat airport on May 20. The phones had been transported from South Korea to Vietnam by a South Korean national who had failed to file a customs declaration.

The airport customs officers teamed up with the Anti-Smuggling Investigation Department, under the General Department of Vietnam Customs, to inspect the male passenger’s luggage. The phones, found in the luggage, were iPhones as well as Samsung and LG devices.

The suspect was identified as O.S.H, 35. He was traveling on flight VN405, departing from Seoul.

The illegal batch of phones is worth an estimated VND3 billion.

Customs officers are investigating the case.

According to the airport’s customs division, the Government’s Decree 69/2018 and Circular 11/2018 issued by the Ministry of Information and Communications stipulate that second-hand mobile phones, including refurbished ones, are banned from import into Vietnam.

Violators can have their items confiscated, receive an administrative fine or even be prosecuted based on the level of the offense.