A 33-year-old Korean man has been arrested after a five month Australian Border Force (ABF) investigation into illegal tobacco imports.
The investigation began in June this year after an allegation was made to the Border Watch hotline. ABF officers at the international Mail Centre in Clyde, identified and stopped more than 150 packages containing illicit tobacco destined for various addresses in the Sydney CBD.
On Wednesday 15 November, ABF investigators conducted several search and seizure warrants on multiple addresses across the Sydney CBD. During the warrants several packages containing illegally imported tobacco were seized.
ABF investigators arrested the Korean man and charged him with the importation of tobacco products, knowing that the goods were imported with the intention of defrauding revenue, in contravention of section 233BABAD of the Customs Act 1901.
The man was granted bail and will reappear at Downing Centre local court on a date to be confirmed.
ABF Superintendent Investigations NSW, Garry Low said the arrests were yet another example of the ABF’s commitment to stopping criminals importing illicit tobacco.
“Tobacco smuggling is a criminal activity that denies the Commonwealth legitimate revenue through evasion of duties and tax,” Superintendent Low said.
“This investigation shows the importance the Border Watch program plays, in allowing the community to assist the ABF in its job to protect Australia’s borders.”
The maximum penalty for tobacco smuggling is ten years imprisonment. Penalties of up to five times the amount of duty evaded can also be imposed by the courts.
Anyone with information about the import or export of drugs, weapons, wildlife smuggling, illicit tobacco or immigration and visa fraud, should report it to Border Watch online at border.gov.au/borderwatch.