The Customs and Excise Department has been closely monitoring illicit cigarette activities at all control points and street level following the levying of the new tobacco duty. It has targeted its efforts at different levels, including enforcement action against smuggling, storage, distribution and peddling of illicit cigarettes.
Speaking on Customs' latest enforcement efforts against illicit cigarette activities at a briefing today (April 9), the Head of the Revenue and General Investigation Bureau, Mr Chow Chi-kwong, said that with Customs stepping up enforcement action, no sign of a deterioration trend was traced and there were fewer illicit cigarette-peddling activities at street level.
Mr Chow pointed out that, over the past month, Customs had been strengthening its enforcement action at different levels, including smuggling, storage, distribution and peddling of illicit cigarettes. It has particularly targeted its enforcement efforts against syndicates which distributed leaflets to promote their phone order service in the sale of illicit cigarettes.
In a series of recent operations, Customs officers cracked down on 16 illicit cigarette storage and distribution centres and arrested 19 people. A total of 1.48 million sticks of cigarettes worth about $2.4 million with a dutiable value of $1.78 million were seized. In addition, 63 cases involving phone delivery service were cracked, in which 67 people were arrested, and 130,000 sticks of cigarettes, worth about $210,000 with a dutiable value of $150,000, were seized.
On illicit cigarettes peddling activities, Customs officers detected 119 cases and arrested 43 people, including 19 sellers and 24 buyers. A total of 170,000 sticks of cigarettes, worth about $270,000 with a dutiable value of more than $200,000, were seized.
On the anti-smuggling side, Customs detected five cases with a total seizure of 9.35 million sticks of cigarettes, worth about $17.75 million with a dutiable value of $11.26 million, and arrested five people. Among them were three major cases intercepted at Sha Tau Kok Control Point in which a total of 6.79 million sticks of cigarettes, worth $12.89 million with a dutiable value of $8.18 million, were seized. Three people were arrested.
"Customs will continue to closely monitor illicit cigarette activities and strengthen manpower deployment to step up enforcement action against any kinds of illicit cigarette activities. Apart from prosecuting the sellers, Customs will also spare no effort to take enforcement action against buyers of illicit cigarettes,”Mr Chow said.
Mr Chow stressed that any person involved in any kind of illicit cigarette activities had criminal liability. Under the Dutiable Commodities Ordinance, anyone involved in the dealing with, possession, selling and buying of illicit cigarettes committed an offence. The maximum penalty on conviction is imprisonment for two years and a fine of $1 million.
He also appealed to members of the public to report suspected illicit cigarette activities to the Customs 24-hour hotline 2545 6182.
Ends/Thursday, April 9, 2009
