Two men from Glasgow have been charged with Excise Duty fraud, after the seizure of around 2.2 million suspected illicit cigarettes.
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) officers searching a business unit in Glasgow’s Southside on 27 June uncovered eight pallets of cigarettes believed to be worth £795,000 in lost duty.
Two men, aged 57 and 53, were charged with the fraud after being arrested and interviewed by HMRC officers. The 57-year-old was also charged with a £408,000 Excise Duty fraud related to another seizure of 1.1m suspected illicit cigarettes in Whitburn, West Lothian, on 27 April. The pair have been released while enquiries continue.
The news follows an unrelated operation where 1.8 tonnes of compressed raw tobacco leaf was discovered and seized by HMRC officers from a haulage depot in Wishaw on 24 June. When processed, this would produce two tonnes of illicit hand-rolling tobacco with an estimated duty loss of £782,000.
Joe Hendry, Assistant Director, Fraud Investigation Service, HMRC, said: “The trade in illicit cigarettes and tobacco damages funding for essential public services and undermines legitimate traders including small, independent corner shops that serve local communities.
“HMRC continues to work closely with our partners in Scotland’s Serious Organised Crime Taskforce to relentlessly pursue the determined minority who refuse to play by the rules.”
