NICOSIA: The massive haul of over ten tonnes of illegal tobacco discovered on Monday in a warehouse in the Industrial Area of Aradippou, Larnaca is the largest ever find on the island.
In total investigators found 10.9 tonnes of raw tobacco and 63 large packing boxes which contained a total of 630,000 readymade cigarettes.
A machine used to make cigarettes was also found.
The cigarettes that were being produced at the illegally ran warehouse had the mark Raquel. Raquel cigarettes are widely sold across the island.
Customs officials state that the cigarettes that were found in Aradippou however were destined for Egypt from evidence found suggesting the cigarettes were to be exported.
Investigators said the illegal cigarettes, Raquel, that were discovered in the Aradippou warehouse have not entered the Cypriot market and that if they had they would have been red flagged as ‘dodgy’ as the packaging is noticeably different.
The tobacco is believed to have been imported from Bangladesh and is thought to have been smuggled into Cyprus from the Turkish Occupied Area. However police are still investing the tobacco’s country of origin.
Authorities state that the unpaid duty on the seized tobacco to exceed €2 million.
Savvas Theologou, 37-years-old, was remanded in police custody for four-days by Larnaca District Court on Tuesday in connection with the illegal tobacco. Theologou is the owner of the warehouse in Aradippou and is one of ten-men that were arrested in connection with the huge find on Monday.
Customs spokesman, Christos Christou said: “Officers discovered a total of ten tonnes of illegal tobacco in the Larnaca area of Aradippou. Approximately two million euros of tax has not been paid on the tobacco found”.
Christou further noted that five Nigerians were found in the premises; they were arrested in connection with the investigation.
Three of the men found are thought to have been working illegally. The working conditions in the warehouse also did not meet proper working standards.
The warehouse owner, Savvas Theologou, is denying any involvement in the crime and claims he “was not aware his warehouse was being used for the storage of illegal tobacco”.
He is refusing to cooperate with the police.
