Hong Kong customs seizes about 2.1m illicit cigarettes, 13 arrested
HONG KONG: Customs officials seized about 2.1 million illicit cigarettes and arrested 13 people in the latest raid on cross-border tobacco smugglers.The seizures, valued at about HK$5.6 million, followed a two-week operation targeting vehicles crossing the border from the mainland. Two cars were seized and five suspected tobacco storage points were smashed.
The tobacco involved would have attracted duties of HK$4.1 million, customs said.
http://customstoday.com.pk/hong-kong-customs-seizes-about-2-1m-illicit-cigarettes-13-arrested/
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How e-retailers such as Flipkart, Amazon are keeping fake products at bay
Stung by instances of rogue sellers on their platform shipping dubious products, online marketplaces are putting in place measures to tighten systems and avoid signing up sellers who can tarnish their brand image. The steps range from physical checks to spending more on analytics to monitor marketplaces. For instance, in the case of Amazon India, internal audits with employees posing as shoppers is a regular feature.
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Killing, not curing: deadly boom in counterfeit medicine in Afghanistan
At the beginning of December Najib’s 10-week-old daughter fell ill, crying with stomach ache late into the night. The next day her chest seemed to hurt, so Najib took her to the doctor, who prescribed paracetamol for the pain, phenobarbital for sedation and the antibiotic cefixime to kill potential bacteria. But over the next few days the baby’s health deteriorated. “She was healthy. We did not expect that this disease would affect her like that,” Najib, 30, said. Years ago, when the family was living in Pakistan, other children in the family with similar ailments had been treated effectively with small doses of paracetamol and antibiotics.
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Tunisia’s smuggling trade poses security risk
At a checkpoint outside Qayrawan, two soldiers inspect a mini-bus transporting locals to Tunis. Looking in the boot, the soldiers pick out a large black Nike bag. Its owner is called, opening it to reveal hundreds of flat caps, and an assortment of tracksuits packaged in plastic sheaths.
The products have reached Tunisia through Ben Gardane, a town located 30km from the Libyan border, having originally reached Libya from China and Turkey.
Lear MoreHoneywell reveals 71% of U.A.E. residents are fearful of the dangers of counterfeit refrigerants used in their homes
A survey released today by Honeywell (NYSE: HON) found that residents of the United Arab Emirates are concerned about potentially dangerous counterfeit refrigerants, which are increasingly found in the Middle East. Counterfeit refrigerants are a dangerous, persistent problem around the world. After several containers carrying counterfeit refrigerants exploded in 2012, the United Nations Environment Programme said that counterfeit refrigerants “appear to be a global issue of concern and a wider range of stakeholders are possibly at risk.”
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IRA Terrorists Turn to Tobacco Smuggling as Black Market Thrives
Spanish police have arrested two former members of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) as part of an investigation into money laundering and tobacco smuggling, as the crack down on tobacco products makes the crime more lucrative.
Donna Maguire and Leonard Hardy, who have both served prison sentences in Germany and Holland for their roles in IRA attacks on the continent in the 1980s were arrested as part of a major police operation, the Belfast Telegraph reports.
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Cigarette Taxes Encourage Smuggling In Turkey
ISTANBUL – Tax hikes on cigarettes in Turkey are helping increase the demand for smuggled cigarettes from Iraq and Syria. In a written statement issued on January 2nd the head of the Confederation of Turkish Craftsmen and Tradesmen (TESK) BendeviPalandöken claimed that the annual increases to the rate of taxes on cigarettes and alcohol need to be frozen, as the hikes are leading to an increase in the smuggling. At the start of the year the tax applied to the sale of tobacco products was increased from TRY 0.13 per pack of cigarettes, to a rate of 0.1866 per pack of cigarettes, while the rate of tax on beer and wine was hike by 15 percent and 16 percent respectively.
http://www.taxationinfonews.com/2015/01/cigarette-taxes-encourage-smuggling-in-turkey/
Lear MoreAlibaba spends $161m to combat fake goods
China’s Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, the world’s largest e-commerce company, spent over 1 billion yuan ($160.7 million) combating fake goods and for improving customer protection from the beginning of 2013 to the end of November 2014, the firm said recently.
“From Alibaba Group’s perspective, we bear a serious responsibility in this fight against counterfeits,” said Jonathan Lu, Alibaba Chief Executive in a statement. Alibaba has been tackling counterfeit products with greater aggression in recent years, particularly in the run up to its record-setting $25 billion listing in New York in September.
Lear MoreTobacco smuggling prompts charge
A Chippewa Falls woman working as a contracted jail employee is accused of smuggling chewing tobacco to an inmate at the Eau Claire County Jail.
Michelle R. Herrmann, 44, 10834 161st St., was charged Tuesday in Eau Claire County Court with a felony count of delivering illegal articles to an inmate. She is free on a $1,500 signature bond and returns to court Feb. 12. According to the criminal complaint:
Jailers received information Dec. 16 that there was a kitchen staff employee providing tobacco products to inmates. An anonymous inmate said chewing tobacco was being brought to the jail from an outside source.
Lear MoreCounterfeit refrigerants throw a scare in UAE
A majority of residents of the United Arab Emirates are concerned about potentially dangerous counterfeit refrigerants, which are increasingly found in the Middle East, a report said.
More than half of the respondents to a survey in the UAE believe there are counterfeit refrigerants fraudulently labelled as brand-name, authentic refrigerants sold in the Emirates, added the survey conducted by technology company Honeywell as part of its campaign to fight counterfeiting.
http://www.tradearabia.com/news/REAL_272855.html
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