A huge job for customs officers. “From March 20 to 27, more than 27 tons of tobacco were seized by 10,100 government agents, which is three times more than during Colbert’s first operation in June 2023,” the General Directorate of Customs said.
“In one week, the state’s income will be 20 million euros. We must fight vigorously against the illicit trade in tobacco products,” said Minister Delegate in charge of government reports Thomas Cazenave on Sud Radio.
Customs officers in Aix-en-Provence made the largest seizure of 10.4 tons of cigarettes on the road in the entire operation.
Traffic boom
In total, the operation resulted in the arrest of 108 people and the opening of 52 cases requesting administrative closure.
Operation Colbert II, developed within the National Anti-Fraud Task Force (Gonaf), is part of the National Anti-Illicit Tobacco Plan 2023-2025.
Illicit tobacco trafficking is booming, with customs seizing 521 tons of tobacco last year, following a 2022 record of 649 tons. Since December 2021, authorities have dismantled five clandestine cigarette factories in France, a veritable cash machine for criminal organizations often specializing in drug trafficking as they seek to diversify.
Source: Le Parisien
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