SMUGGLED CIGARETTES WITH a value of €304,000 were seized at Dublin port this morning, hidden in boxes of “safety footwear.”
Revenue’s Customs Services seized some 600,000 Marlboro cigarettes – roughly 3,000 cartons – when officers examined a large wooden crate.
The consignment of what appear to be rubber-grip flip-flops, had arrived from the Far East this morning.
Hidden underneath a layer of shoes were the cigarettes.
Revenue estimates that if they hadn’t been seized, the sale of the dodgy smokes would have cost the Exchequer around €261,000 in lost taxes.
Investigations are ongoing, with a view to a criminal prosecution.
According to market research firm Euromonitor International, the level of illicit smoking – smuggled and non-duty paid tobacco – was 22.7% in Ireland last year.
Revenue seized 41 million cigarettes intended for illegal sale in 2013, and 100 people were convicted of related charges.
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