Coordinated Customs swoop nets 40m cigarettes
A swoop on cigarette smuggling across the Mediterranean, including Malta, netted 40 million cigarettes, the Malta Customs said today.
Maltese customs officers had intercepted and seized a container with 4.6 million cigarettes as part of Operation Sirocco, which was conducted in June and involved customs jurisdictions across Europe and the Mediterranean.
The operation also led to the seizure of 1,243kg of tobacco, 7,038 litres of alcohol and eight million counterfeit items including clothes, shoes, toys and electronic goods.
Most were shipped from China and the United Arab Emirates and were intercepted after an operation coordinated by the EU Fraud Office (OLAF). Three men were arrested.
The results of the operation are currently being discussed in a conference in Amman.
The illegal importation of the cigarettes alone would have meant lost revenue of €8m in duties.
Interpol, Europol and the World Customs Organisation were also involved.
Popular Stories
Update 3: Woman found dead in car,...
Updated: Woman dies in car crash
Carm Mifsud Bonnici resigns after...
Part of Dwejra 'Azure window' collapses
The end of the bar that ‘never closed’
Bundy does not know whether to...
Updated - Jason Micallef demands...
This WAS the night - Kurt makes it...
'No need for early election if PM's...
In Discussion
Updated - Jason Micallef demands...
Gozo tunnel could take 5-7 years to...
CABS remote controlled aircraft shot...
Carm Mifsud Bonnici resigns after...
Joseph Calleja condemns portrayal of...
Updated: Labour would give...
CABS drone shot down
Second group of migrants arrives
Adrian Vassallo in scathing...
11 Comments
Post comment
Please sign in or create your Account to post comments.
oliver mallia
Oct 5th 2010, 18:24
Very well done! Now the Maltese government have to pay to destroy and to dump them in Malta
Jesmond Micallef
Oct 5th 2010, 13:04
Very well done to Malta Customs. The officers at Malta Customs are an added asset to the country's economy. May God bless and protect them and may they continue their fight against this rotten crime.
Well done to Interpol, Europol and the World Customs Organisation for thier collective participation.
Nice, very nice indeed.
R.BORG
Oct 5th 2010, 11:42
Prosit, Customs Officials!
The country is proud of you.
T Mifsud
Oct 5th 2010, 08:40
I wonder how much this operation cost totally. With a mere 3 people arrested, and just €8m in duties on cigarettes it sounds that this operation was not worth it financially but done only to uphold law, at all costs, which may be triple the intrinsic net amount.
D Camilleri
Oct 5th 2010, 11:06
Are you mad? First of all there is the question of illegality taking the place of legal/honest suppliers. Secondly, counterfeit items are just that - fake without any controls on quality. If you prefer to buy fake clothes and electronic goods, and smoke smuggled cigarettes - well I don't. I prefer honest vendors selling original supplies.
M Mifsud
Oct 5th 2010, 11:56
@D Camilleri
I'm sure T. Mifsud is aware of the importance of the action taken by the customs officers. Maybe he's disappointed by the fact that they are being so successful
Christian Sciberras
Oct 5th 2010, 12:10
Yup, the government ought to invest on criminals - we're running low on them.
j falzon
Oct 5th 2010, 12:28
Mr. Mifsud, do you honestly think this operation cost €24 million! Even your claim that it may even have cost €8 mil is already outrageous. OLAF does a brilliant job and it is great to see that the EU Member States are working together to stop criminality. Even if the costs were high, we still need to send a message to the underworld that we are on their trails.
Jesmond Micallef
Oct 5th 2010, 15:39
D.Camilleri, Very good point. Actually these are goods which "do not exist", really. Its not just the quality that suffers but also the whole economic circle. How safe are these goods, how genuine is the product ? These are all questions, an honest citizen should ask before buying such goods, should he or she realises that of course. But thats another matter.
Well done once again to Malta Customs. Keep at it, you do a very good job and Malta is proud of you.
T Mifsud
Oct 5th 2010, 15:42
Easy guys! You got the wrong gist from an admittedly short and ambiguous statement. The OLAF do what they do, ambush counterfeit goods and illegal stuff and therefore well done to them. You all misinterpreted by congratulations into me being one of the big fish that imports this stuff (especially by the sarcastic comment of M Mifsud).
All was said in terms of finance and not in terms of morailty. Infact I am disappointed that just 3 people are arrested. Surely this operation involves scores of accomplaces and some big fish!. Sorry to disappoint you all but you fed on each other's misinterpretation and made a mess to it.
David Muscat
Oct 5th 2010, 08:38
Well Done!!!