The South African Police Service (SAPS), has arrested six men believed to be of Zimbabwean origin who were loading illicit cigarettes on several trucks worth millions of Rands in Eldorado Park, Johannesburg.
The suspects were arrested after a joint intelligence operation by the SAPS and the South African Revenue Service (SARS).
The cigarettes, which included brands such as Remington Gold, Chelsea, Royal Express and Premium, are believed to have been smuggled from Zimbabwe. In a statement, SAPS said:
Six suspects were arrested after the integrated team discovered the suspects in the process of loading boxes of illicit cigarettes onto a number of trucks, which were allegedly going to be dispatched to a destination yet to be confirmed.
Preliminary reports suggest that the crime scene at an industrial site in Eldorado Park, Johannesburg, was being used as a distribution point where alleged traders and in this case, the six arrested suspects, would collect the illicit cargo for further distribution and sales.
The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigations (Hawks) have taken over investigations from SAPS and SARS, and more arrests are expected.