Smoking tobacco has many harmful effects. Video / NZ Herald
A pair of company directors accused of having attempted to smuggle almost half a million illicit cigarettes into New Zealand were arrested at Auckland International Airport yesterday before they could board a flight overseas.
The man and woman, aged 32 and 34, will instead travel to Manukau District Courtthis morning to face three charges each.
A man and a woman are set to appear at Manukau District Court today after they were arrested yesterday at Auckland International Airport while trying to leave the country. The pair are accused by Customs of having tried to smuggle 486,200 cigarettes into New Zealand. Photo / Customs
Nigel Barnes, chief Customs officer for fraud and prohibition, said the agency estimates it intercepted 486,200 cigarettes that were allegedly intended for the pair. That number would equate to almost $735,000 in duty and sales tax revenue evasion.
“Frontline Customs officers were able to detect the concealment of cigarettes using state-of-the-art x-ray technology at the new Auckland Processing Centre,” Barnes explained.
Photos provided by Customs show at least some of the seized items to be cartons of Double Happiness brand cigarettes, which are manufactured in China.
The packages were disguised to look like non-tobacco products.
An X-ray image shows cigarettes concealed in a package intercepted by Customs. Two company directors have been arrested, accused of trying to smuggle nearly 500,000 cigarettes into New Zealand. Photo / Customs
Both defendants now face three charges: importing prohibited goods, defrauding Customs of revenue and making false or “defective” declarations on the parcels.
If convicted, the pair could face fines of up to three times the value of the cigarettes for the allegedly incorrect declarations and a prison sentence of up to five years for the alleged tax evasion.
Customs officials say illegal cigarette imports were disguised to look like non-tobacco products in packages sent to New Zealand. A man and a woman will appear in court today, accused of trying to smuggle almost 500,000 cigarettes. Photo / Customs
Court documents do not list a New Zealand address or driver’s licence for either defendant.
Customs encourages anyone with tips regarding illicit tobacco smuggling to call the agency at 0800 WE PROTECT (0800 937 768) or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. Both hotlines are confidential.
Craig Kapitan is an Auckland-based journalist covering courts and justice. He joined the Herald in 2021 and has reported on courts since 2002 in three newsrooms in the US and New Zealand.
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