Contraband fags to go up in smoke

Chaminda PERERA

Customs officials yesterday handed over a consignment of 4.2 million cigarettes seized in February to Ceylon Tobacco Company to be destroyed at the Puttalam cement factory.

These cigarettes will be put into the Puttalam Cement factory burner in the presence of Tobacco Company and National Authority for Tobacco and Alcohol officials.

The total value of the cigarettes is Rs. 31.5 million.

The Government would have lost Rs. 95.5 million in terms of duty and other levies if they had been released to the local market.

This consignment had been sent from Dubai using names and local addresses of Sri Lankans working in the Middle East through a freight forwarding company based in Peliyagoda.

This company on suspicion had informed the Customs about the containers in which the boxes containing cigarettes cartons were stacked. The Customs also seized parts of 10 motor cycles brought to the country illegally.

These parts were found in a container consisting of goods sent by Sri Lankan workers in the Middle East to relations.

The officials have assembled these motorcycles and found that high powered motorcycles were included in this stock.

According to Assistant Customs Director Samantha Ponnamperuma, the 650 cc and 400 cc motorcycles had been prohibited from being used in Sri Lanka.

An approval should be taken from the Defence Ministry to import these motorcycles to Sri Lanka.

The total value of these motorcycles have been estimated to over Rs. 1.6 million.