(From right) Wong at the press conference with Kiu and Ling.
SIBU: The three locals who were arrested in Guangzhou, China for drug trafficking on Dec 2, have been cleared of the charge.
They were released after being detained by the Chinese authorities for 17 days to facilitate investigations.
During a press conference at a hotel here on Thursday, Kiu Chiong Nguong and his wife Ling Pik Woo, together with Wong Dek King were happy that they were cleared by the Chinese authorities after the probe.
For businessmen Kiu and Wong, the ordeal would not deter them from going to China, adding that they had been given documents certifying that they never had any criminal record there.
In a joint statement, the three said: “We are compelled to clarify the matter because rumours have gone wild in Sibu about us committing drug trafficking when we got arrested by the Chinese authorities.”
The press conference was held through Sibu Drug Merchants Association, arranged by its chairman Ting Kah Hua, which also saw Sibu Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Hu Yu Siong attending.
Kiu of Kek Lin Seng Drugs Store in Rejang Park is the association’s treasurer, while Wong of Cheh Ming Drugs Store is the deputy chairman.
Wong said the three of them went to Guangzhou on Nov 27 to import some merchandise.
At one point, he said a Chinese man working for a consignment company had asked him to take a parcel to Kuala Lumpur.
After the parcel was passed to him, Wong then asked couple Kiu and Ling to bring it back as they planned to return on Dec 2, while he stayed back.
“My wife and two children were joining me from Sibu for a holiday then. The three of us never suspected that the parcel contained illicit items.”
Wong said after the Chinese police investigated the case, they found that the three had no part in whatever content that was inside the parcel.
“We were released on Dec 19,” Wong said, Wong said when Kiu and Ling were checked by Customs at the airport, he was also there with the Chinese national because he (Wong) was waiting for his to arrive.
The three, however, thanked the Malaysian Consulate in China for their help during the detention, adding they were well treated by the Chinese authorities throughout the whole 17 days.
Wong said the first thing they did after being arrested was to contact the Malaysian Consulate.
The three also thanked Hu for his help.
At the press conference, Wong publicly apologised to Kiu and Ling, saying that they got into trouble because of him.
He then stood to bow to the couple. Kiu, on the other hand, remained calm, saying: “The important thing is we have returned safely.”