Customs seizes 14,000 illegal cigarettes and more in ongoing crackdown

A crackdown on illegal goods yields contraband tobacco, undeclared fuel, 15,000 plastic bags on which no tax was paid and more than 3,500 counterfeit products

The Customs Department confiscated 13,800 illegal cigarettes and 2.7kg of tobacco in a wide-ranging crackdown that involved shop inspections.

The agency said today it carried out 72 inspections at various retail outlets, which yielded 7,200 illegal cigarettes.

Another 4,000 cigarettes were intercepted at the airport and 2,600 were stopped at the Freeport.

But the department’s crackdown over the past few weeks also yielded 5,120 litres of illegal fuel over which no tax was paid. The agency said it carried out eight inspections linked to fuel.

Furthermore, customs officials pulled out of the market 14,800 plastic bags that were wrongly declared at importation stage to avoid paying excise tax.

There were 159 car inspections on arrival from Sicily and a further 269 inspections on passengers for undeclared money.

Customs confiscated €28,755 in undeclared cash and found 3,534 counterfeit products.

In a statement the department said contraband was a serious criminal offence and could carry a prison sentence. It called on the public to help in the fight against illegal products by reporting information anonymously on 25685124 or 25685200.