Foreign cigarettes worth Rs 1 crore seized in DRI raids

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) arrested two persons here today and seized smuggled foregin cigarettes worth over Rs one crore and foreign currency notes worth Rs 2.31 crore, it said.

Over seven lakh sticks of high-end foreign cigarettes of brands such as Marlboro, Benson & Hedges, Rothmans, Gunang Garam with market value of Rs 1.07 crore were seized in raids at various places in the city, the DRI said in a statement.

Two Delhi-based persons were running this racket of smuggling and sale of foreign cigarettes, with Mumbai being their hub of distribution, the DRI said.

Both were arrested. Their identities were not disclosed.

The accused had warehouses in Musafirkhana area of south Mumbai which were raided by DRI teams, the DRI said.

Apart from cigarettes, Rs 2.31 crore in foreign currencies were also seized from the warehouses, it said.