A sniffer dog has found 99 million illegal cigarettes in shipping containers at the Port of Hull, the largest seizure of its kind at a UK port, reports BBC.
The cigarettes, which were in eight containers, were found in June and were believed to have been shipped through the United Arab Emirates. According to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), the cigarettes were worth about GBP 44 million in unpaid taxes. Import documents described the containers as carrying birch logs. A 57-year-old man from South Wales was arrested in July in connection with the seizure and released on bail, HMRC said.
Anthony Usher, deputy director of HMRC’s fraud investigation service, said: “This is the single largest seizure of cigarettes ever made at a UK port. Our streets would have been flooded with them, had they not been discovered. Cheap cigarettes come at a cost as they often fund organised crime and other illegal activity that causes real harm to our communities, such as drugs, guns and human trafficking.”