AUSTRALIA
Australia’s newly established Illicit Tobacco Taskforce (ITTF) has seized six tons of illegally grown tobacco leaf that could have resulted in the loss of AUD13.3 million (US$9.86 million) in excise duty if sold to smokers.
The crops were found at a site close to the Northern Territory town of Katherine during raids carried out jointly by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and Australian Border Force (ABF), with support from Northern Territory Police.
The operation saw investigators confiscate three separate crops of plants at the site, as well as shipping containers that were used to dry tobacco leaves, along with a sophisticated irrigation system.
Commenting on the success of the operation, ATO Deputy Commissioner, Will Day, said: “This seizure is well outside the traditional tobacco-growing season, in an area thousands of kilometers from previously established tobacco growing areas.
Day stated an organized crime network was most likely behind the growing operation, and that tobacco from the site would have been destined for distribution around the country.
In May, Australia’s government launched a major crackdown on the sale of illicit tobacco products that ministers predicted would raise AUD3.6 billion (US$2.7 billion) over a four-year period.
Led by ABF, the ITTF was formed to support the crackdown and is intended to boost the government’s ability to enforce the new laws and disrupt the supply of counterfeit and smuggled tobacco.
A recent report from professional services firm KPMG revealed that repeated tax hikes on tobacco products in Australia had been responsible for a marked increase in the sale of illicit tobacco products across the country.