Spain seizes 2.2 mn euros of fake cigarettes from China

Police in Spain have seized 465,000 packs of fake cigarettes worth more than 2.2 million euros smuggled by boat from China, the interior ministry said today.

The seizure in Valencia led to 10 arrests, the ministry added.

Police believe the counterfeit Marlboro cigarettes were destined for France as the text on the packets was in French, the ministry said in a statement.

Two Spaniards and eight Polish nationals were arrested in the operation.

The cigarettes arrived in Valencia last month on a ship from the port of Chiwan, just north of Hong Kong.