2 nabbed, P750-K smuggled cigarettes seized in Pagadian City
ZAMBOANGA CITY – Police authorities are preparing charges against two individuals caught transporting about PHP750,000 worth of smuggled cigarettes in Zamboanga del Sur.
According to a report released by Col. Roel Lami-ing, Zamboanga del Sur Provincial Police director, on Saturday, suspects Samuel Abrenica, 51, delivery truck driver, and his 18-year-old aide, Bienvenido Ancheta Jr., were arrested at about 11:30 a.m. on Friday by joint police and military personnel in Barangay Baloyboan at the provincial capital, Pagadian City
Lami-ing said the troops were manning the Community Police Assistance Center checkpoint when they intercepted the truck loaded with 50 master cases and bound for Zamboanga Sibugay.
He said the duo failed to present documents to show the legality of their shipment of 27 cigarette master cases of green Commando, 22 master cases of red Commando, and one master case of Premier.
On October 17, the police also seized an illegal cigarette shipment in Barangay Upper Bag-ong Tudela, Josefina — 874 reams of Indonesian-made Gudang Baru cigarettes worth PHP786,600.
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1158301
Lear MoreHong Kong seizes record $154 mn in luxury goods headed to China
Hong Kong customs announced a record seizure on Friday of luxury goods that were headed to mainland China on a river barge in the latest operation to target an explosion of cross-border smuggling.
The haul included an array of highly sought-after items such as luxury watches, handbags, cosmetics and fins from endangered marine species.
Officials said the goods were worth about HK$1.2 billion ($154 million), by far the largest seizure made by the city’s customs agents.
The operation took place on October 14 when customs discovered what they said was a suspicious vessel that claimed to be transporting plastic pellets.
Instead officers discovered a veritable department store of luxury items.
“The Chinese New Year is only around three months from now… so the mainland has a larger demand for these expensive foods like fish maw and sea cucumber than in normal days,” customs investigator Cheng Tai-hei told reporters.
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19,800 packets of foreign cigarette and 413 kg of ganja seized along Assam-Tripura border
Guwahati/IBNS: Police have seized 19,800 packets of foreign cigarettes and 413 kg of ganja worth more than Rs 6 lakh from two vehicles in Assam’s Karimganj district along Assam-Tripura border.
During checking, police have seized 19800 packets of foreign cigarettes from a mini truck bearing registration number TR-05D-1904 at Churaibari area along Assam-Tripura border.
A police official said that the market value of the seized cigarette is estimated at Rs 2 lakh.
“We have also seized the vehicle and detained two persons. On the other hand during checking we have recovered 32 packets of ganja weighing around 413 kg from a truck at Churaibari area. The market value of the seized ganja is estimated at Rs 4 lakh,” the police official said.
Lear MoreBanned Tobacco Worth Rs 8.5 Lakh Seized from Milk Crate in Nagpur
Nagpur Police seized banned tobacco products, worth around Rs 8.85 lakh on Sunday. Jaripatka police intercepted a milk container on CMPDI Road, Nagpur and arrested the vehicle’s driver, Kishan. According to the police, the consignment was bought from a businessman who has been identified as Farook by Vijay Jethani of Vijay Traders. The supplier, who is allegedly from Chhindwara, has been made an accused in the case. Senior inspector Vaibhav Jadhav informed the Times of India that Jethani has been absconding ever since the action. The action was led by zonal deputy police commissioner (DCP) Manish Kalwaniya and ACP Roshan Pandit, supervised by CP Amitesh Kumar. The food and drugs administration (FDA) will test the seized consignment at a government laboratory. Flavoured tobacco is a banned commodity in the state of Maharashtra.
Jadhav, in his statement, revealed how his team located the consignment. “The sacks of scented and flavoured tobacco were being ferried behind the milk crates. We intercepted the vehicle after specific information,” he said. He also mentioned that after Jethani’s consignment was caught by a crime branch recently, previous records against him have also been found.
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Rajasthan Bypolls: Illicit Liquor, Cash Worth Over Rs 79 Lakh Seized in Vallabhnagar, Dhariawa
Illicit liquor, cash, narcotics substances and other material worth over Rs 79 lakh was seized in Rajasthan’s Vallabhnagar and Dhariawa assembly constituencies where bypolls are scheduled on October 30, officials said.
Chief Electoral Officer Praveen Gupta said from the day the by-elections were announced for Vallabhnagar and Dhariawad till October 21, various items worth Rs 79.29 lakh have been confiscated.
He said strict vigil is being maintained by the departments concerned in the constituencies and immediate action is being taken on any suspicious activity. Voting in both the assembly constituencies will be held on October 30 and the counting will take place on November 2.
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Over five million illegal cigarettes seized from retail outlets in the first six months of the year
Over five million illegal cigarettes have been seized from retail outlets in the first six months of the year as part of a joint initiative to tackle the illegal tobacco trade.
The haul of illicit products also includes more than 1,700kg of hand rolled tobacco and 66kg of shisha.
In total, more than £2.7 million pounds worth of illegal tobacco products have been taken off streets across England and Wales since the operation launched in January 2021.
The illegal cigarettes were seized as part of Operation CeCe, a joint initiative between the National Trading Standards and HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).
Operation CeCe is part of a wider government strategy to disrupt every aspect of the illegal tobacco market, from front-line retailers to global Organised Crime Groups who drive the illicit trade, smuggling tobacco internationally on a grand scale.
The strategy includes tackling supply lines at source by shutting down illegal factories, intercepting smuggled product and cash at the border and disrupting those individuals selling the product in shops and markets. All of which is achieved through close collaboration with law enforcement and other partners.
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Over 12,000 bottles of illicit liquor destroyed in Ahmedabad
A prohibition seizure destruction drive was organised in Gota area of Ahmedabad Wednesday afternoon, in which a total of 12,384 bottles of IMFL worth Rs 72.92 lakh were destroyed using bulldozer.
Over 12,000 bottles of illicit Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) seized by the city police were destroyed in a drive organised in Ahmedabad on Wednesday.
According to the police, a prohibition seizure destruction drive was organised in Gota area of Ahmedabad Wednesday afternoon, in which a total of 12,384 bottles of IMFL worth Rs 72.92 lakh were destroyed using a bulldozer by the city police in the presence of Deputy Commissioner of police (Zone 1) Ravindra Patel.
“The seized illicit liquor from five police stations — Sola High Court police station, Naranpura police station, Vastrapur police station, Vadaj police station and Ghatlodia police station — was destroyed in the presence of senior police, administrative and prohibition department officials on Wednesday,” said a senior police official.
Lear More600 kgs of smuggled sea cucumber worth $4 million seized in India’s southern Tamil Nadu coast
An Indian Coast Guard (ICG) team in southern Tamil Nadu state seized 600 kilograms of sea cucumber from a small boat that was involved in smuggling.
The market value of seized sea cucumbers is said to be around Rs 30 million ($400,000 approximately).
Based on a tip-off, the ICG team tracked the suspect vessel at Mandapam, Ramanathapuram district, and cordoned off the road to block their escape.
Subsequently, the boat was found to be anchored off Uchhipalli coast in Ramanathapuram on Tuesday afternoon.
The Coast Guard teams then rummaged the vessel and recovered 31 gunny bags of sea cucumber weighing 600 kgs. The boat, along with seized sea cucumbers, were then brought to Mandapam and handed over to the forest department officials.
Sea cucumbers are an important constituent of the marine ecosystem as they play a key role in maintaining the health of the ecosystem.
By excreting the inorganic nitrogen and phosphorus, sea cucumbers enhance the productivity of benthic animals —those living on the ocean floor.
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Zim loses US$30m to smuggled washing powder
Zimbabwe is losing approximately US$30 million a year through the smuggling of Maq washing powder, a report by the Detergents Manufacturers Association (DMA) claims.
About US$12 million is foregone annually through tax evasion while US$18 million is externalised to purchase the product before it is smuggled through Zimbabwe’s porous borders, the association said.
“It can be calculated that the government is losing approximately US$30 million a year just through the smuggling of a single product into Zimbabwe, Maq washing powder, as US$12 million is foregone annually through evaded taxes and US$18 million is externalised out of Zimbabwe to purchase the smuggled product from South Africa,” a recent DMA report read.
“Smuggling is, therefore, not only a significant problem for the industry and the workforce, but also for the government and the economy as a significant amount of revenue is lost due to the evasion of duties and taxes because of the smuggling.”
https://www.newsday.co.zw/2021/10/zim-loses-us30m-to-smuggled-washing-powder/
Lear More‘Money, liquor flowingfreely in Huzurabad’
Hyderabad: Seizure of Rs 1.57 crore during the Huzurabad bypoll campaign was only the tip of the iceberg compared to the actual amount being spent by parties, according to independent observers.
Police and excise officials have also seized liquor worth Rs 53 lakh, about 3.5 kg of ganja, 30 gm gold and 14 kg silver so far. Observers said with the campaign temperature rising, both the ruling party as well as the opposition were going all out to woo the voters by pumping in huge amount of money and liquor.
Telangana chief electoral officer Shashank Goel said, “I have held a review meeting with all departments, including income tax, excise and police at Karimnagar. They were asked not to allow any money or liquor or any other means of luring voters. They are conducting checks frequently. There are three observers posted. Inter-disciplinary teams are also in action. We have been booking Model Code of Conduct violations.”
Goel further said, “Political parties are filing complaints against each other. We are forwarding the same to district authorities and returning officers to check the veracity. Reports are sent to ECI. We had a meeting with representatives of the political parties where several issues were discussed.”
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