In a spot of bad news for the smokers of Borneo (or good news for their lungs, depending on how you look at it), the Sarawak state Customs Department seized 1,172,000 contraband cigarettes from various brands over the weekend following a tip-off.
Officers stormed an unnumbered lot along Siburan’s Jalan Penrissen, and discovered the contraband inside with nearly RM800,000 (US$200,000) worth of unpaid duties and taxes on them.
The total value of the seizure was set at RM655,887 (US$159,720).
A statement from Customs officials said they believed the stock, which did not have tax stamp stickers, was slated to be distributed to shops in the local market.
Illicit cigarette seizures are not uncommon in the East Malaysian state, with police describing Sarawak as a “big and lucrative market” for contraband smokes.
In previous seizures, the majority of the confiscated goods came from Vietnam, China, Thailand, and Indonesia.
