27 October 2022 – Millions of rands worth of illegal or illicit goods were confiscated in several joint operations conducted through coordinated efforts within SARS over the past month.
- An intelligence-driven operation between enforcement teams within SARS and the SA Police Service (SAPS) took place on 25 October 2022 relating to the prevention and detection of cross-border smuggling and Customs and Excise non-compliance in the cigarette and tobacco industry.
SARS Enforcement Teams deployed to the East Rand in Gauteng and supported by the SAPS, found a truck offloading raw tobacco, allegedly imported from Zimbabwe, at a warehouse. The team also found a substantial number of boxes with raw tobacco, which had been previously delivered to the warehouse.
It was further established that the tobacco, which was destined for a Bonded Warehouse, had been illegally diverted to an unregistered warehouse. This is in contravention of the Customs and Excise Act.
The Joint Enforcement Teams conducted a full inspection, and the following goods were detained for further investigation:
o 472 boxes of raw tobacco with a Customs value of R10 919 000 (Incl. duties & Vat)
o Truck transporting the raw tobacco boxes to the value of R2 500 000.
