A montage of some of the illegal tobacco haul uncovered in Sydney and Melbourne. Pictures: ABF
More than $75 million worth of illegal cigarettes and tobacco have been seized from 10 shipping containers in Sydney and Melbourne over five days.
An Australian Border Force (ABF) statement said that the illegal shipments hauls were discovered from September 14-18 in 10 shipping containers inbound from China, United Arab Emirates, Singapore, India, and Vietnam.
The ABF said seven shipments came into Sydney and three in Melbourne.
A total of 45,150,000 cigarettes and 6480kg of loose tobacco were found worth more than $75,305,539 in lost tax revenue. They were to have been destroyed.
ABF Commander Ken McKern said each seizure of illicit tobacco and cigarettes reduces the money going into criminal syndicate pockets.
“We are seizing more illicit tobacco at the border than ever before, with tens of millions of cigarette sticks seized weekly,” he says.
“As the supply and demand for this product continues to grow, this grows the organised crime syndicates interest and involvement in the black market.”
Commander McKern says criminal syndicates see the illicit tobacco trade as a low-risk, high-reward market.
“They use their profits to fund other illicit activities and attempt to import other illegal substances into Australia,” he says.
“The ABF continue to work closely with our international customs and border agency partners to ensure we are stopping as much illicit tobacco before it even reaches Australian shores,” Commander McKern said.
In the 2023/24 Financial Year, the ABF seized more than 1.8 billion cigarettes and more than 436 tonnes of loose-leaf tobacco worth an estimated $3 billion.
The penalties for smuggling tobacco are severe and can include up to 10 years’ imprisonment and/or a fine of up to five times the amount of duty evaded.
Anyone with any information about the importation and export of illicit tobacco or cigarettes should contact (click here) Border Watch. Reports can be made anonymously.
