Nearly 11 tonnes of tobacco, or 10.4 million cigarettes, seized by customs in Gard: not a first this month

Près de 11 tonnes de tabac retrouvées dans un véhicule sur l’A9. MAXPPP – Sébastien Muylaert

Ce mercredi 27 mars 2024, les douanes d’Avignon ont saisi près de 11 tonnes de tabac dans un véhicule qui circulait sur l’A9.

Cigarettes by the million. This Wednesday evening, the Avignon customs internal surveillance brigade carried out a check on a portion of the A9. In a vehicle coming from Spain, nearly 11 tons of tobacco were found instead of a cargo of textiles, reports the Nîmes judicial court in a press release.

Not a first

In total, 1 040 boxes of 50 cartridges of 200 cigarettes (which makes 54 000 cartridges) were seized, which is equivalent to 10.4 million of cigarettes, or 10.4 tonnes.

The man who drove the road complex was referred to the Nîmes public prosecutor's office and then placed in pre-trial detention. The driver, a Russian national, will appear in criminal court on April 2.

While the customs seizure may seem impressive, nearly 11 tons of contraband cigarettes had already been found at the beginning of March, indicates the prosecution. The driver involved was sentenced to prison, a customs fine of 520,000 euros and the goods were obviously confiscated.