Indonesian Navy and Customs Thwart Shipment of 3.9 Million Illegal Cigarettes

Personnel from the Indonesian Navy (TNI AL) along with Makassar Customs secured a container containing 3.9 million illegal cigarettes that was about to leave the Soekarno-Hatta Port dock to a warehouse in Makassar, South Sulawesi.

“We successfully took action against one container unit filled with millions of illegal cigarettes without tax stamps,” said Commander of Kodaeral VI Rear Admiral Andi Abdul Aziz in a written statement on Saturday (9/5).

Aziz explained that the operation stemmed from intensive observation and surveillance in the Makassar Port area on Thursday (7/5). Officers suspected the movement of a container truck leaving the dock towards a transport service warehouse on Sarappo Street, Wajo Subdistrict, Makassar.

“Officers detected anomalies in the truck driver’s behaviour, who repeatedly got on and off the vehicle at Makassar Port before heading to the loading and unloading site,” he said.

During the inspection, said Aziz, there was a commotion between Customs officers and loading workers, resulting in damage to the documentation equipment of Customs members.

“However, the situation was brought under control by the joint team. The modus operandi used was a compartmental system, where the logistics process between the driver, goods owner, and courier was disconnected from each other to break the information chain if enforcement occurred,” he said.

Aziz stated that officers secured several pieces of evidence in the form of 244 cartons of cigarettes without tax stamps, totalling 3.9 million sticks.

“These cigarettes are valued at Rp5.7 billion, with potential state losses reaching Rp3.7 billion,” he said.

Currently, all evidence has been secured at the Kodaeral VI headquarters for sealing processes and further investigation regarding vehicle ownership and the illegal cigarette distribution network.

“The case of assault against Customs personnel will also be processed legally,” he said.