Counterfeit cigarettes and clothing worth R6m seized in Durban raids

Counterfeit cigarettes and clothing worth R6 million was seized during raids in Durban conducted by government officials and law enforcement agencies, the KwaZulu-Natal department of economic development, tourism and environmental affairs (EDTEA) said.

In a statement on Sunday, the department said cigarettes worth R3 million and clothing worth R3 million were discovered in two raids in Pheonix and the Durban Harbour.

The department said a foreign national has been arrested and his shop shut down for selling counterfeit medication worth millions of rands in Durban.

“Another foreign national has also been arrested for selling expired sweets for children.”

KwaZulu-Natal MEC for EDTEA Nomusa Dube-Ncube said as the country moved from level 5 to Level 4 of the national lockdown, the province was strengthening its efforts aimed at protecting its economy against fraudsters and international criminal syndicates “who are crippling our economy”.

Dube-Ncube said inspectors from the department’s consumer protection unit and business regulations, working with the department of labour, crime intelligence, Durban Metro Police, Home Affairs’ immigration unit, the South African Police Service (SAPS) and the South African Revenue Services (Sars) “have been hard at work over the weekend and past few days”.

Dube-Ncube said after law enforcement agencies and inspectors from the department seized counterfeit products, which included fake medication such as Grandpa, condoms and cigarettes, on 22 April, the department undertook “to deal a permanent blow to a very professional and sophisticated big racket”.

The MEC said this racket is using what could appear as a legitimate business.

“Sars reported to us that these syndicates exploit differential taxes of highly-taxed goods such as cigarettes, alcohol and petroleum.

“They sometimes choose not to declare their goods or they bribe officials or they transport their goods through illegal and unmonitored routes.

“The syndicates are also involved in fraudulent transactions involving under-declarations of imported goods. They are known to double-invoice for the purpose of using undervalued invoices for declarations.”

(Compiled by Makhosandile Zulu)

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