Customs nab MVR 1.6 mil worth smuggled cigarettes

Maldives Customs Service has confiscated MVR 1.6 million worth of smuggled cigarettes.

Customs on Saturday said it recently conducted inspects in Male' and Hulhumale', as part of an investigation on alleged smuggled contraband.

The authority inspected one location from Hulhumale' on Monday last week, and four venues from Male' and Hulhumale' later on Wednesday last week as part of the investigation.

173 cartons of 1,731,597 cigarettes were confiscated through Customs' raids, with an estimated market value of MVR 1.6 million.

The duty on the now confiscated cigarette cartons is worth MVR 5.6 million, customs added.

Maldives Police Service and the Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) both lended support in Customs' operations. The authority thanked both law enforcement agencies for their support.