Nearly 11.5 tonnes of counterfeit cigarettes from an international smuggling network were seized on Friday at La Pacaudière (Loire), we learned on Saturday from the Roanne (Loire) prosecutor’s office.
The cargo, with an estimated value of nearly 6 million euros, was on board a truck registered in Latvia, which was traveling on National Route 7 in the direction of Paris.
The driver in custody
The vehicle, from Spain, was officially carrying radiators bound for Great Britain when it was checked by customs. Its driver, a 46-year-old Latvian, was questioned in police custody in Saint-Etienne on Saturday by the judicial customs investigation service.
“He will be presented to the Roanne prosecutor’s office on Sunday morning for an immediate appearance on Wednesday before the criminal court,” said Abdelkrim Grini, public prosecutor.
Record of seizures
The 11.44 tons of cigarettes were packaged in British Superkings brand packets, owned by Imperial Tobacco, the same source said.
Seizures of contraband tobacco reached a new record last year in France with 640.1 tonnes of tobacco and cigarettes intercepted (including 47 tonnes in the Auvergne Rhône-Alpes region), compared to 402 tonnes in 2021 (+59.2 %), with the dismantling of several clandestine tobacco factories in France, according to a report drawn up by customs last February.