Malaysian Authorities Seize 500,000 Contraband Cigarettes Off Kuala Besar Coast

March 09: The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) thwarted a smuggling attempt with the seizure of 500,000 sticks of white cigarettes, worth RM374,000, including tax, in the waters off  Kuala Besar, in Kota Bharu.

Kelantan Maritime director Captain Muhd Nur Syam Asmawie Yaacob said acting on information, a MMEA  patrol boat went to the scene at about 4am. “When we arrived at the scene, there was a suspicious boat with three men onboard. 

“We tried to intercept it and after about half an hour chase, the boat landed at the beach and the suspects fled. […] The MMEA team searched the area and found 50 large packages containing the white cigarettes,” he told a media conference at the MMEA office in Tok Bali.

He believed the cigarettes were to be smuggled into Kelantan for markets in Kuala Besar, Tumpat and Kota Bharu.

Source: Bernama via Daily Express