Thai soldiers seize 13,000 packs of untaxed cigarettes near border
Early morning bust exposes covert smuggling operation
Soldiers from the Burapha Task Force, in collaboration with excise officials, confiscated more than 13,000 packs of untaxed foreign cigarettes hidden within a sugarcane plantation near the Thai-Cambodian border in Sa Kaeo province in the early hours of today, August 10.
The operation, conducted jointly by the Burapha Task Force, the Aranyaprathet Special Task Unit, and the 1204th Ranger Company, commenced around 12.30am as part of a patrol in the border region.
Officers noticed 15 suspicious sacks concealed approximately 10 metres from the Khong Nam Sai canal, which forms part of the border, located in Ban Non Khilek, Phansuk subdistrict, Aranyaprathet district.
Upon inspection, a significant quantity of untaxed foreign-brand cigarettes was discovered, including 4,500 large packs of Mond, 830 small packs of Mond, 770 large packs of Capital, and 6,990 small packs of Oris, amounting to a total of 13,090 packs, reported Bangkok Post.
The confiscated items have been transferred to Sa Kaeo provincial excise officials for further legal proceedings. It is suspected that the cigarettes were smuggled across the border to be sold in local markets, evading tax obligations. An investigation is currently underway to identify those responsible for the smuggling operation.
In similar news, a 20 year old Myanmar national was caught smuggling illegal cigarettes worth over 2 million baht through natural pathways near the Sangkhla Buri border. The shipment was intended for the Ban Phra Chedi Sam Ong Market.
On July 21, Police Major General Atsadawut Panyaraoon, commander of the 9th Infantry Division and leader of the Surasi Task Force, along with Kanchanaburi governor Athisan Intra, revealed they had received intelligence about the smuggling operation.
The cigarettes were being secretly moved from the border into inland areas, using natural routes to avoid security checkpoints.
Colonel Phannasak Phriwapanich, commander of the 29th Infantry Regiment, and Colonel Piyanes Phatrasasawatwong, deputy commander of the Lat Ya Task Force under the Surasi Task Force, teamed up with Border Patrol Police Company 134 and Sangkhla Buri district officials to carry out a patrol and stakeout near Ban Bo Ye Poon, Nong Lu subdistrict, in Sangkhla Buri district, Kanchanaburi province.
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