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THE Sarawak Customs Department has seized some RM12.64 million worth of smuggled kretek cigarettes today.
“The 9am raid in Kuching district had uncovered the smuggled cigarettes. And, a 44-year-old man was arrested with some 16.6 million sticks of the cigarettes,” State director Norizan Yahya said in a statement.
On Mar 25, the Sarawak General Operations Force (GOF) said it had had confiscated RM202.2 million worth of smuggled goods in less than three months so far this year. The huge amount of seizures were recorded since Jan 1 until now, said state GOF director Senior Assistant Commissioner Che Ghazali Che Awang.
The latest seizures amounting to some RM3.9 mil were reported over the last few days in Limbang, Lubok Antu, Sri Aman and Engkilili involving smuggling of cigarettes, rice and orher foodstuffs, he said.
Revealing the statistics to the media in Kuching, he said, the RM202.2 million worth of seizures were from 84 successful raids carried out by GOF units across the state.
"From Jan 1 until now, we have carried out Ops Taring Alpha 1 and made 84 successful raids and confiscated RM202.2 mil worth of contraband goods.
"We have arrested 208 people in these raids statewide who are believed to be involved in facilitating these illicit activities. Of the number arrested, 155 of them are Sarawakians and the other 53 are foreign nationals," he said.
The raids included locations in cities and towns as well as rural areas, he added.
Raids were also carried out along the very remote border zones of the Sarawak-Kalimantan border where big quantities of rice, cooking oil, frozen meat and other food items were seized from the smuggling suspects.
The suspects and the items seized have since been handed over to the customs authorities for further action.
Sarawak is known as a smuggling hotspot due to its long and porous mountainous border with Kalimantan. – March 26, 2025
