Customs seize 7m counterfeit cigarettes

Customs officers yesterday seized a container laden with seven million counterfeit cigarettes during a routine check of containers in transit at Malta Freeport.

A Customs Department spokesman said the discovery was made by members of the Customs monitoring unit using equipment donated by the US government.

Their attention focused on a 40-foot container which, when opened, was found to contain mainly "Marlboro" counterfeit cigarettes. One-fourth of the contents of the container consisted of furniture.

The spokesman said the haul consisted of 700 boxes each containing 10,000 counterfeit cigarettes.

He explained that although the container was in transit, the Customs Department was obliged to seize counterfeit objects as a signatory to the Intellectual Property Rights Convention. Items that were suspected to be counterfeit had to be stopped when detected.

The container was taken to the Customs stores in Marsa where the cigarettes were unloaded.

Investigations are also being conducted with regard to the furniture found in the container.

The spokesman said the department wanted to thank the Malta Freeport authorities for their cooperation to enable its officers to perform their duties effectively.

This is the third major haul of counterfeit cigarettes in recent weeks. Last month Customs officers seized nearly 20 million cigarettes from two containers in separate operations.