CAPE TOWN: uth Africa accounts for a quarter of the world’s illicit cigarette market‚ with taxes not paid on one in four smokes bought in the country. Despite this‚ the South African Revenue Service has failed to answer questions this week on how much the country loses in terms of revenue from the illegal trade in cigarettes.
An explosion in the trade of illegal and illicit cigarettes in South Africa over the past five years has seen the country become both a multi-million dollar market as well as a conduit to other African markets for international smuggling syndicates. In 2015‚ the now chairman of the Tobacco Institute of Southern Africa‚ Francois van der Merwe‚ revealed to The Times that hijacking a vehicle transporting cigarettes was like “striking gold”.
At the time‚ he said that between 2010 and 2015‚ South Africa lost more than R22-billon because of illicit cigarettes‚ which are cigarettes which have been either undeclared or incorrectly packaged by the manufacturer to avoid paying tax.
Illegal cigarettes are cigarettes which are either stolen or counterfeit. A single cigarette on the street today sells for R3 depending where you buy it with hijackers stealing up to 10‚000 in a single heist.
The failure by SARS to respond to questions‚ follows this week’s arrest of Mozambican national Enoque Luisa Ricotso‚ 39‚ in Mpumalanga as he tried to flee police and escape into Swaziland and on to Mozambique.
Ricotso‚ who allegedly specialised in hijacking British American Tobacco delivery trucks‚ was arrested for allegedly operating an illegal cigarette empire‚ which is thought to have generated him and his suspected criminal network over R20-million in the past decade.
He is to appear in court soon on 50 charges of armed robbery and hijacking. His arrest follows the sentencing of two Zimbabwean cigarette smugglers last week in the Mawhelereng Regional Court in Limpopo.
Collen Mkandla‚ 43‚ and Lovers Chauke‚ 35‚ were arrested in January 2012 when they were stopped by police. A search of their Nissan bakkie saw officers recover R178‚794 worth of illicit Remington Gold cigarettes.
They were convicted of contravening the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act‚ Customs and Excise Act and the Tobacco Control Act.
The duo were fined R10‚000 or two years’ imprisonment for contravening the Customs and Excise Act‚ R10‚000 or two years’ imprisonment for breaking the Tobacco Control Act and R3‚000 or a year imprisonment for contravening the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act.
