Clinics

BBC news report: Officers seize 10m smuggled cigarettes at Felixstowe

Officers seize 10m smuggled cigarettes at Felixstowe

 

BBC news reports that:

 

An attempt to smuggle more than 10 million cigarettes hidden in boxes of tomatoes through the port of Felixstowe has been foiled.

The haul - in two containers shipped from the Canary Islands - is the biggest single seizure made at the port this year, said the UK Border Agency.

Officers' attention was drawn to the shipment by a discrepancy in the documentation.

It would have cost the UK £2m in unpaid VAT and excise duty.

Cigarettes pulped

When the containers were opened on 13 September, detection staff were confronted with four pallets of fresh tomatoes concealing the cigarettes - a mixture of brands including Raquel Golds, Regal and Superkings.

Brian Hill, the UK Border Agency's assistant director at Felixstowe, said: "Cigarette smuggling is a serious organised crime and often provides the funding for much larger criminal operations, such as drug or people trafficking."

The tomatoes - totalling more than two tonnes - are being offered to Colchester Zoo.

The cigarettes will now be shredded and the pulp used to generate electricity for the national grid.

 

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