Customs officers have arrested nine people and seized goods worth $22 million in nine cross-boundary smuggling cases involving vehicles since January.

The cases came after the Customs & Excise Department boosted inspection of cross-boundary vehicles.

Goods smuggled out of Hong Kong were mostly high-value items like mobile phones and other electrical and electronic products, while those smuggled in were mainly counterfeit merchandise.

Smugglers often mixed the smuggled goods with declared items, or concealed them in the driving compartment, the toolbox and other areas of their vehicle.

The department X-rays vehicles to check for smuggling and will continue stringent enforcement.