Although smuggled cigarettes have not been transported in large volume as before, now they are transported from Cambodia to Vietnam in a small volume by smugglers across the southwest border.  If the transportation is not detected promptly, there will be large warehouses of smuggled cigarettes in a short time. 

Smuggled cigarettes seized by Dong Thap Customs. 

Smuggled cigarettes left on the roadside

Smuggled cigarettes have been discovered by Dong Thap Customs Department and competent forces in recent times. Through verification, competent authorities detected these cigarettes were derelict goods and left on the roadside. Recently, the Customs Enforcement Team under Dong Thap Customs Department coordinated with Team 3 of Economic Police Division of Dong Thap Province to seize four cases of contraband cigarettes with large volume. According to the Customs Enforcement Team, after receiving information about the transportation of contraband cigarettes by smugglers from the border of Thuong Lac commune, Hong Ngu district, Dong Thap province to An Loc ward, Hong Ngu town, Dong Thap province to transport to other places for consumption, the working group chased, however the transporter vacated and left three bags of contraband cigarettes on the roadside with volume of 930 packs of cigarettes. 

Implementing Plan 38/KH-BCD dated June 5,2020  of the Steering  Committee 389 of An Giang province, the Standing office of the Steering  Committee 389 of An Giang province  has

worked with sectors and authorities to collect and destroy smuggled cigarettes which were assessed and classified by the Council for assessing and classifying the quality of smuggled cigarettes. The total volume of smuggled cigarettes destroyed was 950,000 packages.

Previously, when patrolling on Highway 30 in An Loi Hamlet, An Binh A Commune, Hong Ngu Town, the team seized four PP bags containing 1,500 packs of foreign cigarettes; detected nearly 1,500 packs of smuggled cigarette in Trung hamlet, Tan Thanh commune, Thanh Binh district and 1,500 packs hidden inside baskets near the bus stop (in Tan Thanh market).  The smugglers had fled and left the infringing goods.

On July 14, the working team inspected six black plastic packages on theroadside NI, Vinh My ward, Chau Doc City, An Giang province. The working team detected 1,890 packs of contraband foreign cigarette including 400 packs of Hero and 1,490 packs of Jet. 

According to the anti-smuggling force in southwest border provinces, transporting contraband goods, especially contraband cigarettes, were transported by smugglers at nights. On July 26, at the national border milestone number 266 in Vinh Chanh 1 hamlet of Vinh Nguon ward, Chau Doc city, the anti-smuggling team of Vinh Nguon Border Guard Station-An Giang detected two suspects carrying bags across the border.

Renting land to open road for transporting contraband goods

According to the Steering Committee of 389 An Giang province, competent forces of An Giang province drastically tookmany measures to prevent the pandemic and smuggling in the border route, making the smuggling in the area decrease in scale, volume, organisation and complexity.  However, sometimes, when the demand for consumption increases, especially cigarettes, smugglers have used many tricks to smuggle, causing complexity. Smugglers have assigned people to monitor competent forces and each officer to notify each other.

Many suspects have rented land from people to open roads to transport contraband across the border. This situation has incurred in the border area of Chau Doc city and was detected and prevented promptly by competent forces.

For cigarettes, in recent years, due to high demand and large price difference, especially impact of prevention and control of pandemic has made the supply on the domestic market limit, some time scarcity, thereby; smugglers have transported cigarettes across borders and to the inland for consumption with sophisticated, organised methods and tricks. The main method of smugglers is using high-speed motorcycles to transport goods from the border to inland. Competent forces seized nearly 500,000 smuggled packages.

According to asurvey, the price difference of cigarette is high, about VND 900/package  in border area and increases gradually  when it is transportedinland. Specifically, the price of Hero and Jet cigarettes is VND 13,500/pack and VND 16,500 pack when they are transported to Long Xuyen is VND 14,400/ pack and 17,400/ pack; the price of Hero cigarette transported to Can Tho is  VND 15,000/pack and Jet of VND 18,000/ pack. 

According to Steering Committee of 389 Long An province, in the first seven months of 2020, competent forces of the province seized nearly 1.4 million packages of smuggled cigarettes; anti-smuggling forces of An Giang province  inspected and discovered 1,266 cases of trafficking ortransporting banned goods and smuggled goods, the total value of infringing goods was more than VND 30 billion. In particular, the number of smuggled cigarettes was more than half a million packages.