Belgium’s customs service has dismantled an illegal cigarette factory in the Brussels commune of Molenbeek-Saint-Jean, the Federal Public Finance Service (FPS Finance) announced on Tuesday.
The factory had a complete production line and a packaging line, FPS Finance said in a press release.
Customs seized 170,760 Marlboro brand cigarettes and 11.5 tonnes of cut tobacco, representing €2.2 million in excise duties and Value Added Tax, according to FPS finance.
Empty packets, cigarette paper, filters and silver paper were also found in the factory.
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The operation was carried out together with Polish customs, Europol and the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF).
The factory in Molenbeek-Saint-Jean is the third production site to be dismantled this year. In addition, customs have found four illegal production sites for shisha tobacco and discovered six warehouses and a tobacco cutting site.
Jason Spinks
The Brussels Times
