Yesterday (09 July 2002), South African Revenue Service (SARS) Customs Official conducted an inspection in a Pretoria retail outlet suspected to be dealing in counterfeit goods. During the inspection, counterfeit and contraband goods were detained under the Customs and Excise Act. These included 271 cartons of contraband cigarettes and 2 267 cartons of matches that appeared to be counterfeit.
During the inspection, Custom Officials found matches being off-loaded from a forty-foot (40ft.) container. Closer inspection of the consignment revealed that the matches was a counterfeited product. A total of 2 267 cartons of matches with an estimated value of R89 428,00 was subsequently detained. The 271 cartons of contraband cigarettes detained are estimated to be R18 970,00, and have been smuggled into the country without payment of import duties and VAT.
The consignment has been referred to South African Police Service for further investigation and criminal prosecution.
The production and smuggling of contraband tobacco products and counterfeit goods is a global phenomenon that not only deprives the South African fiscus of VAT and customs duties, but also causes the general public to unknowingly purchase inferior products thinking that they are genuine products. Furthermore, brand holders also suffer a great deal as well. Unscrupulous manufacturers duplicate legal branded products to gain the edge above the brand holder and thus effectively put them out of business and the market.
The World Customs Organisation, currently chaired by South Africa, has embarked on a special project to deal with this threat at an international level. Using the Regional Intelligence Liaison Office, of which the Eastern and Southern African office is based in Nairobi, Kenya, the WCO is able to facilitate international co-operation to combat smuggling, round tripping and counterfeiting.
ISSUED BY THE COMMISSIONER FOR THE SOUTH AFRICAN REVENUE SERVICE
PRETORIA