World News | Holy Smoke! German Customs Seizes 10 Tons of Shisha Tobacco
Get latest articles and stories on World at LatestLY. German authorities have seized 10.2 metric tonnes of water pipe tobacco they say was being smuggled into Berlin from the Mideast to avoid import taxes, officials said on Thursday.
Berlin, Nov 19 (AP) German authorities have seized 10.2 metric tonnes of water pipe tobacco they say was being smuggled into Berlin from the Mideast to avoid import taxes, officials said on Thursday.
The overnight operation carried out by police and customs officials on Tuesday came as the culmination of an investigation that began during the summer of a German-Iraqi network that distributed illegal tobacco to hookah bars Europe-wide, German officials said.
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Authorities allege that three suspects between the ages of 27 and 35 operated three legal shops and also the illegal smuggling operation. Some 200,000 euros ($237,000) in import duties should have been paid on the tobacco seized, authorities said.
The 35-year-old accused of being the ringleader is an alleged member of a known Berlin crime family. Neither the names of the suspects nor the family were released.
Authorities did not say where in the Middle East the tobacco came from. (AP)
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)