SEPANG: The Royal Malaysian Customs Department (JKDM) seized 5.82 million sticks of various brands of contraband white cigarettes, worth nearly RM4.48 million, in five separate operations in September and October.

Customs Central Zone assistant director-general, Norlela Ismail said that three of the operations took place in the Free Commercial Zone (FCZ) at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), while the other two operations were conducted at West Port and a warehouse in Selat Klang Utama, Port Klang, Selangor.

She said that the total value of the seizures amounted to RM576,448, with an estimated after-duty value of RM3.89 million.

Sharing the chronology of the operations, Norlela said that the operation in West Port on Sept 27, involving a container, resulted in the seizure of 4.16 million sticks of white cigarettes, believed to be intended for import into the country. Additionally, 960,000 sticks of white cigarettes were seized from a warehouse on Oct 16.

"During the warehouse operation, we successfully detained a 38-year-old local man for investigation. The seized cigarettes were believed to have been stored temporarily at the warehouse before being dispatched to various locations across Peninsular Malaysia using a lorry transport company," she told a press conference here today.

Norlela said that on Oct 2 and 7, Customs officers conducted daily inspections on three cargo shipments at the Cargo Terminal Operator (CTO) in the Free Commercial Zone (FCZ) at KLIA, resulting in the seizure of 752,200 sticks of white cigarettes, believed to be intended for export to countries in Oceania and Europe.