11 arrested in crackdown on sale of illicit cigarettes

Customs officers have arrested 11 people in their latest crackdown on the sale of illicit cigarettes.

Officers said they seized 130,000 sticks of cigarettes with duty not paid in an ongoing operation that began on July 12.

Speaking in a media briefing, investigator Choi Cheuk-fun from the Revenue Crimes Investigation Bureau said the items would have generated HK$430,000 in tax.

Choi said officers went undercover and posed as customers.

“During the operation, we found that some retail stores were blatantly selling illicit cigarettes,” he said.

“Some stores also sold cheaper cigarettes that look similar to duty-paid cigarettes in packaging with the legally required health warnings – commonly known as ‘cheap whites’.”

Choi said those arrested were staff and owners of the shops in question. They are five men and six women aged 31 to 75.

Authorities have not ruled out further arrests.

Choi appealed to vendors not to sell cigarettes from unknown sources.

Edited by Edmond Fong ...