Delhi: 9,420 packets of banned foreign cigarettes seized; four arrested

New Delhi, July 21 (IANS) In a major clampdown on the cigarette smuggling racket in the national capital, the Delhi Police crime branch on Monday seized a huge cache of foreign brands worth over Rs 25 lakhs and also arrested four people, including two women from the Delhi-Noida Border.

They were found to be smuggling prohibited foreign cigarettes in the capital and NCR region from Myanmar via Guwahati. The smugglers reportedly hired two women as decoys, with the intent to mislead the police.

A total of 9,420 packets with over 1.8 lakh prohibited cigarettes of different international brands were recovered from their possession. A Mahindra Scorpio and another SUV were also impounded, used for smuggling prohibited cigarettes.

The Crime Branch team apprehended four persons, namely Mukeem, Sameer, and two women, in a Scorpio N SUV car with a huge quantity of smuggled prohibited cigarettes.

The police crackdown followed specific inputs, based on technical surveillance and human intelligence, over the smuggling of a huge cache of prohibited cigarettes to Delhi.

Two men and two women were arrested at the Noida Delhi Border in a Mahindra Scorpio car, along with a huge quantity of prohibited foreign cigarettes, which were being smuggled from Myanmar.

Upon inspection, it was found that the seized cigarette packets lacked the statutory health warnings as mandated by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. As per market evaluation, the worth of the seized contraband stood at approximately Rs 25.76 lakhs.

Following the arrest, the accused were subjected to intensive interrogation, during which they revealed that they smuggled prohibited cigarettes via Guwahati from Myanmar.

“Among the huge cache of recovery, 5960 packets were of ESSE Light Company (Total 1,19,200 Prohibited Cigarettes) while 3,460 Packets were of Bension & Hedges Company (Total 69,200 Prohibited Cigarettes),” the Delhi Police shared in a statement.

Two key accused, namely Mukeem and Sameer, belong to Baghpat in Uttar Pradesh. They are studied up to matriculation. The recovered Mahindra Scorpio vehicle belongs to Sameer, who received it in his marriage as a gift from his in-laws.

One lady was married and separated from her husband, and is now living in Delhi with her parents. Another lady belongs to Lucknow and she is unmarried, and they both are known to each other as they worked at a Gurgaon office earlier.

Both women were hired by the accused Mukeem for Rs 4000/- each.

--IANS

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