Zhuhai’s Gongbei Customs announced in a statement yesterday that its officers seized 331,400 cigarettes at the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge’s (HZMB) Zhuhai Port (customs and immigration checkpoint) on October 8.
According to the statement, on that day, while conducting a routine X-ray inspection of a lorry transporting goods declared for export under a customs transit procedure from another region, customs officers noticed abnormalities in the X-ray images of certain areas of the vehicle and therefore proceeded to conduct a manual inspection.
Upon further examination of the relevant goods, officers found that the cartons had been packed around their inner sides and top layer with goods matching the description on the outer packaging, meaning that no abnormalities were visible when any side was opened, the statement said.
Following a detailed inspection, it was discovered that grooves had been left in the middle of some of the goods, and these had been stuffed with cigarettes individually wrapped in opaque plastic bags, the statement said. It added that upon counting, a total of 1,657 cartons of cigarettes—amounting to 331,400 cigarettes—were seized, covering 23 brands including “Chunghwa”, “Double Happiness”, and “Liqun”.
Gongbei Customs reminded the public that, in line with the Chinese mainland’s Tobacco Monopoly Law, the state has implemented a monopoly management system for the production, sale, import, and export of tobacco products, operating under a tobacco monopoly licence system. The export of cigarettes requires approval from the administrative department under the State Council in charge of tobacco monopoly and the acquisition of a tobacco monopoly licence.
This undated handout photo provided by Zhuhai’s Gongbei Customs yesterday shows 331,400 cigarettes seized by its officers at HZMB’s Zhuhai checkpoint on October 8.
