Fuel smuggling: Ghana lost $150m in 2 months
Ghana lost over $150 million to fuel smuggling in September and November 2016, the Executive Secretary of the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers has said.
Duncan Amoah believes the country will lose billions if the activities of black marketers are not halted. He was speaking to Joy News about the illegal activities of a fuel smuggling syndicate that appear to be rife in Ghana.
“We have insisted the government should go after these people, arrest and prosecute them and as much as possible, put in measures to curtail these illegal activities which are making the country lose so much,” he said.
Mr Amoah does not understand why in other countries those who evade taxes are dealt with ruthlessly, yet in Ghana, many people who have found disingenuous ways of making money are allowed to go scot-free.
http://www.myjoyonline.com/news/2017/may-26th/fuel-smuggling-ghana-lost-150m-in-2-months.php
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Koreans caught smuggling 2,348kg of gold in ‘private parts’
Dozens of Korean citizens were caught smuggling 2,348 kilograms of gold hidden in their “private parts,” the Korea Customs Service (KCS) said on Tuesday. It was the nation’s biggest smuggling bust.
Fifty-one people, including several housewives, were apprehended at Incheon International Airport early last month. The smuggling had been happening for about two years. Male smugglers were hiding five or six gold bars (3cm x 3cm), each weighting 200 grams, in their rectums while the women hid the gold in their rectums or vaginas.
The value of the gold was about 113.5 billion won ($100 million) â�� the highest value of gold confiscated in a single smuggling case. The smuggling happened from March 2015 and the gold came from Tokyo and China’s Yantai.
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2017/05/251_229920.html
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Hope on GST to curb cigarette smuggling: Tobacco Institute of India
TII says India has become fastest growing and fourth largest illegal cigarette market in the world.
The coming national goods and services tax (GST) will, says the cigarette industry, help curb smuggling of items in the segment.
Cigarettes, both duty paid and tax paid, comprise 15 per cent of the entire tobacco market in India, which was estimated at Rs 144,000 crore in 2015.
The Tobacco Institute of India (TII), representing 98 per cent of duty-paying cigarette makers, says the country has become the fastest growing and fourth largest illegal cigarette market in the world, on account of excessive taxation.
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Over 6 million packs of smuggled cigarettes seized in 6 months
Taipei, May 29 (CNA) The government’s efforts to step up a clampdown on tobacco smuggling have borne fruit over the past six months, resulting in the seizure of over 6.22 million packs of smuggled cigarettes during the period, Minister of Finance Sheu Yu-jer said Monday.
The Ministry of Finance and relevant central and local government agencies have adopted tougher measures to combat cigarette and tobacco smuggling since Oct. 20 last year in anticipation that a law that could double the health surcharge on cigarettes from NT$10 (US$0.33) per pack to NT$20 from June 12 could spur smuggling, according to Sheu.
To date, more than 6.22 million packs of smuggled cigarettes have been confiscated during the six-month period. For the first half of this month, about 1 million packs have been seized, Sheu said.
http://focustaiwan.tw/news/asoc/201705290007.aspx
Lear MoreCounterfeit products worth Dh114 million seized in Dubai
Dubai: Counterfeit versions of branded products including women’s bags, belts and expensive watches worth Dh114.5 million were seized by Dubai Police in the first quarter of 2017.
Major General Khalil Ebrahim Al Mansouri, Assistant to the Dubai Police Chief for Criminal Investigation Affairs, said they recorded 71 cases this year relating to counterfeit goods, and arrested 77 suspects.
“Combating economic crimes is very important in Dubai as it affects the famous brands being sold here,” Maj-Gen Al Mansouri said.
“We use the latest technology to tackle such crimes and protect the rights of the legitimate brands. We provide protection to hundreds of famous brands. We work closely with the big companies and respond to any complaints regarding counterfeit products,” Maj-Gen Al Mansouri added.
Lear MoreMusician Malunga arrested over counterfeit products
Malawi police have confirmed arresting musician John Malunga for allegedly selling counterfeit products.
Malunga,36, was arrested on Monday this week by Mchinji police following the law-enforcers’ investigations established that he was producing and selling counterfeit Ruo Body Cleaner (Ufa wa Mbatata).
Originally Ruo Body Cleaner (Ufa wa Mbatata) is produced by C & NF, a Mulanje-based company which contracted the musician to promote and sell the product.
C & NF Managing Director, Crispin Jedegwa said were forced to engage police after his company discovered a counterfeit Ruo product on market. Mchinji police arrested the Zidzaululika star following a tip-off and seized the counterfeit products.
https://www.nyasatimes.com/musician-malunga-arrested-counterfeit-products/
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Koreans caught smuggling 2,348kg of gold in ‘private parts’
Dozens of Korean citizens were caught smuggling 2,348 kilograms of gold hidden in their “private parts,” the Korea Customs Service (KCS) said on Tuesday. It was the nation’s biggest smuggling bust.
Fifty-one people, including several housewives, were apprehended at Incheon International Airport early last month. The smuggling had been happening for about two years. Male smugglers were hiding five or six gold bars (3cm x 3cm), each weighting 200 grams, in their rectums while the women hid the gold in their rectums or vaginas.
The value of the gold was about 113.5 billion won ($100 million) â�� the highest value of gold confiscated in a single smuggling case. The smuggling happened from March 2015 and the gold came from Tokyo and China’s Yantai.
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2017/05/251_229920.html
Lear MoreIllicit trade, an invisible enemy: MP S Dev
“Tax evasion needs to be seen as an anti-national act and illicit trade should be treated as a national threat,” stated Sushmita Dev, Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha.
She further emphasized on the need for a national agency to take over to stop the menace of illicit trade at the event that organized by FICCI CASCADE on the ‘Impact of Illicit Trade on Industry, Economy and Consumers’ on Wednesday.
While addressing the occasion, Arun Chawla stated that, “India today has the potential to become a global manufacturing hub. However, widespread smuggling and counterfeiting, in the absence of an adequate enforcement mechanism to stop it, can act as a dampener in achieving this goal.”
FICCI’s Committee Against Smuggling and Counterfeiting Activities Destroying the Economy (CASCADE), over the years, has been actively focusing on curbing the problem of growing illicit trade in smuggled, pass-offs and counterfeit goods.
https://bureaucracytoday.com/latestnews.aspx?id=183145
Lear MoreIllicit trade, an invisible enemy: MP S Dev
“Tax evasion needs to be seen as an anti-national act and illicit trade should be treated as a national threat,” stated Sushmita Dev, Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha.
She further emphasized on the need for a national agency to take over to stop the menace of illicit trade at the event that organized by FICCI CASCADE on the ‘Impact of Illicit Trade on Industry, Economy and Consumers’ on Wednesday.
While addressing the occasion, Arun Chawla stated that, “India today has the potential to become a global manufacturing hub. However, widespread smuggling and counterfeiting, in the absence of an adequate enforcement mechanism to stop it, can act as a dampener in achieving this goal.”
FICCI’s Committee Against Smuggling and Counterfeiting Activities Destroying the Economy (CASCADE), over the years, has been actively focusing on curbing the problem of growing illicit trade in smuggled, pass-offs and counterfeit goods.
https://bureaucracytoday.com/latestnews.aspx?id=183145
Lear MoreIllinois Men Plead Guilty to Smuggling Untaxed Tobacco Products Into Minnesota
The Washington County Attorney’s Office has reached plea agreements with a pair of Illinois men accused of aiding and abetting the sale of untaxed tobacco, the Minnesota Department of Revenue announced in a release Wednesday.
Mohammad A.M. Abdul Majid of Bridgeview, Illinois, and Iman Gencehan Ugurlu of Oak Lawn, Illinois will each receive five years probation and have agreed to pay the state more than $74,000 in restitution.
The release states the charges stem from a traffic stop by the state patrol in which the men were reported to have been found in possession of more than $78,000 worth of untaxed tobacco products. According to the release, that was the largest known seizure of such products in state history.
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