A cargo of cigarettes worth more than Ksh32 million that were allegedly illegal has been seized by Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) personnel and a multi-agency team of detectives headquartered at the Economic and Commercial Crimes Unit.
According to a statement from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the package was seized along Riara Road in Kahawa West, Nairobi, close to Shra Engineering.
“The consignment comprising of over 20,000 packets of popular Supermatch and Palma Safari cigarette brands was seized by the undercover team posing as potential clients at a residential house along Riara Road, near Shra Engineering in Kahawa West, Nairobi County,” DCI stated.
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The detectives also found empty cigarette cartons with the labels British American Tobacco (BAT), Kenya, and Supermatch, as well as fake stamps from the Uganda Revenue Authority and the KRA.
One of the suspects, Veronicah Njeri Kariuki, was detained at the Muthaiga police station and then arrested before being charged in court.
The DCI estimates that the smuggled cigarettes caused a total tax loss of Ksh18 million.