Michael Sakuneka
LIMPOPO – THE Tzaneen police seized cigarettes worth more than R2 million on a farm outside Tzaneen recently.
Tzaneen cluster police spokesperson, Lt Col Moatshe Ngoepe, said the police went to the farm after they received a tip-off from some residents who were concerned, as this seemed to be a syndicate that dealt with illegal cigarettes.
According to Ngoepe, a joint operation was established to deal with the issue of illegal cigarettes and they were now searching for the suspects, who were known to the police.
This after the suspects fled the scene when the police arrived.
“On arrival, police found a container full of 145 boxes of illegal cigarettes with various names such as Pacific Blue and Remington Gold,”Ngoepe said.
The cigarette boxes where transported to local police stations as evidence,
The total value of the cigarettes is estimated at a street value of R 2 million.
Ngoepe appealed to anyone who might have information about the whereabouts of the suspects to contact Col James Espach at 082 451 7169.
1 668 cartons of illegal cigarettes confiscated
