KOTA KINABALU: Contraband items, such as alcohol, electrical appliances and cigarettes valued at over RM800,000, were confiscated in four operations carried out by the Customs Department earlier this month.
Acting assistant director general of Sabah Customs Department, Saidin Jalaluddin, said these items were confiscated following raids beginning March 4. The first raid targeted three containers at the Sepanggar Port near here.
“Our personnel found untaxed alcoholic beverages worth around RM809,028 in these container raids,” he said in a press conference on Wednesday (March 26).
A second raid was conducted on a premise around the city at 2pm the same day, where over 751 litres of alcohol worth some RM6,723, including tax, were seized, he said.
Saidin said a follow-up crackdown saw their team confiscate 26,726 sticks of smuggled cigarettes worth around RM25,015.
On March 6, a raid was carried out at the Lahad Datu Express Bus Terminal, where 216 rolls of cables and LED lights worth over RM5,060, including tax value, were seized.
“We believe all these were brought into the state illegally,” he said, adding that the seized items from all four raids were suspected to have been declared as something else when shipped to the state.
Saidin said these cases will be investigated under the Customs Act 1967.
He urged the public to work with the department to curb smuggling and to contact their toll-free number at 1-800-88-8855 for information sharing or queries.
“The identities of informers or whistleblowers will be protected,” he assured.
Saidin said the department plans several more operations over the next few days to prevent smuggling.
