HUANGGANG Customs has thwarted three recent attempts to smuggle Apple’s smartwatch, the Apple Watch, into Shenzhen via Futian Checkpoint since April 24 when the latest Apple gadget went on sale in Hong Kong.

    An unidentified Hong Kong native attempted to bring four Apple Watches worth about 12,000 yuan (US$1,936) into Shenzhen without declaring them to the customs April 24. The smartwatches were carried in a shopping bag, according to a report in yesterday’s Southern Metropolis Daily.

    It was Huanggang Customs’ first seizure of smuggled Apple Watches.

    Some reseller shops in Hua-qiangbei, a hub of electronic products in Futian District, are willing to buy an Apple Watch for 1,000 yuan higher than Hong Kong retail price, the paper said.

    The gadget sells for at least 2,202 yuan in Hong Kong and 2,588 yuan on the Chinese mainland.

    Some smugglers intercepted by the customs have traveled across the border between Shenzhen and Hong Kong three or four times in a single day.

    Customs said that seized watches will be auctioned and the proceeds will be turned over to the State treasury.

    In Hong Kong, local customs seized undeclared smartwatches and smartphones on an outbound MPV, including 26 Apple Watches and 132 mobile phones. The seized products were worth about HK$599,000 (US$77,271). Hong Kong Customs arrested a 45-year-old female driver and a 34-year-old man.

    Any person who brings undeclared goods across the border could face a fine and jail time of up to seven years, according to Hong Kong law. (Martin Li)