The Portuguese Customs Authority (AT) have seized around 7 million smuggled cigarettes with an estimated market value of 1.575 million euros, the AT said in a statement issued on its website on Thursday.

The AT said that the cigarettes were found hidden inside a shipping container of rolls of polyester thread. Three men have been arrested involved in the case.

According to the statement the container was loaded in August at Port Klang, Malaysia and reached the port of Lisbon after it was transferred onto another ship at the port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands.

"This seizure is a heavy blow for contraband in Portugal and is part of efforts made over the last few years in combating customs and tax fraud," the statement said. Enditem

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)