cigarette seizure — A British passenger was remanded in custody for three days after customs officers at Larnaca airport seized a significant quantity of duty-unpaid cigarettes from his luggage.
- cigarette seizure — A British passenger was remanded in custody for three days after customs officers at Larnaca airport seized a significant quantity of duty-unpaid cigarettes from his luggage.
The incident unfolded on Friday when customs officials, acting on evaluated intelligence, identified the passenger just prior to his departure for the United Kingdom. During a thorough inspection of his luggage, officers uncovered 85 cartons, each containing 200 cigarettes, alongside eight packets of 20 cigarettes.
The cigarettes in question were flagged as duty-unpaid due to the absence of required health warnings in Greek and Turkish. Furthermore, they lacked the necessary security feature and unique traceability code, raising suspicions about their legality. The customs officers swiftly arrested the passenger and confiscated both his luggage and its contents.
On Saturday, the passenger appeared before Larnaca district court, where a three-day remand order was issued to enable further investigations into the matter. Authorities at Larnaca customs have confirmed that their inquiry is ongoing as they assess the full extent of the situation.
