Untaxed cigarettes worth B7M seized in Narathiwat

Authorities search untaxed cigarettes in a lorry towed to the Exercise Office Region 9 in Tak Bai district of Narathiwat on Sunday. The search is part of the raid at a warehouse in the district. (Photo: Assawin Pakkawan)
Authorities lookup untaxed cigarettes in a lorry towed to the Exercise Office Area 9 in Tak Bai district associated with Narathiwat on Sunday. The search is part of the raid at a warehouse in the area. (Photo: Assawin Pakkawan)

NARATHIWAT: Excise officials raided a warehouse in Tak Bai district of this southern edge province on Saturday and seized a sizable quantity of untaxed cigs worth about 7 million baht.

Panupong Sriket, director of the Excise Office Region nine, said at a press conference on Sunday that the raid around the warehouse was jointly conducted by excise and customs authorities with support from police investigators in the Central Investigation Bureau following a tip that foreign cigarettes have been smuggled from overseas and stored presently there.

The authorities seized in the raid 351, 500 packets of more than 7 million cigs worth about 7 million baht.

An investigation has been underway to track down those involved in the smuggling.

Those discovered guilty of involvement will be liable to  a fine of about 331 mil baht and about 22 million baht within unpaid taxes.