KOTA BARU: The state Customs Department seized 1,940 sticks of illicit cigarettes worth about RM1.5 million including unpaid duties, in two separate operations last month.
No arrests were made when the department detained two lorries in Tumpat and Bachok, as the drivers managed to escape on foot during the two operations that were conducted separately on July 31.
State Customs director Wan Jamal Abdul Salam Wan Long said his men spotted a suspicious lorry at Kampung Chat in Tumpat at 5.45am during the first operation.
"The lorry driver managed to escape on foot when our men approached his vehicle.
"The team found 1,040 sticks of cigarettes worth RM
RM114,400 when they inspected the lorry," he said.
In the second operation, Wan Jamal said the department spotted another suspicious lorry at Kampung Badak in Bachok at about 9.30pm.
"The lorry driver managed to escape. Upon checking, they found 90,000 sticks of cigarettes worth about RM99,000 inside the vehicle," he said.
He said the department would soon trace the owners of the transport companies that owned the two lorries.
"Investigation showed that the cigarettes were smuggled into the state via the border area by a syndicate, using the same company to transport them.
"We believe the contraband was meant for local distribution," he said.