SIBU: The State Customs Department seized more than RM27 million worth of smuggled cigarettes, liquor and fireworks, including in unpaid taxes, during a series of integrated operations, which ended early this month.
The contraband was shipped into the state via 12 containers, and was seized in Sibu and Sarikei near here during the two-month-long operation.
Customs Department director-general Datuk Seri Subromaniam Tholasy said eight of the containers, containing contraband worth more than RM21.08 million, including in unpaid taxes, were confiscated here while the remaining containers were found in Sarikei.
“A total of 103,650 cartons and 750 master cases of cigarettes worth about RM20 million, including in unpaid taxes, were found inside three of the containers. Six of the containers contained more than 60,000 litres in thousands of bottles of liquor worth more than RM6 million, including in unpaid taxes.
“The three other containers were used to smuggle firecrackers packed in more than 1,500 boxes worth RM1 million, including in unpaid taxes,” he said at the state Customs Department office here yesterday.
Subromaniam said investigation showed the shipper made a false declaration in a bid to smuggle in the contraband and evade taxation.
“In the Sarikei case, some of the items were declared as 1,200 boxes of machinery spare parts, when they were actually 1,654 cartoons of liquor worth RM227,848.84 including in unpaid tax.
“The 750 master cases of contraband cigarettes worth more than RM5.4 million were declared as furniture spare parts in the importer manifest.
“The fireworks, worth more than RM1 million (including in unpaid tax), meanwhile, were also falsely declared as furniture spare parts.”
The cases, he said, were being investigated under Section 135 (1)(a) of the Customs Act, which provides for a fine of not less than 10 times and not more than 20 times the value of the goods; or the maximum three years’ jail sentence of not more or both.
