Published
Update
Video length: 2 min
Tobacco: illegal cigarette sales soar on the Internet
Online, cigarettes can be found at half price. More harmful to health, their sale is illegal and customs are trying to stop the traffic. – (France 2)
Online, cigarettes can be found at half price. More harmful to health, their sale is illegal and customs are trying to stop the traffic.
More than six tonnes of material intended for making cigarettes, raw tobacco and paper tubes were seized a few weeks ago during a check of a truck on the A39 motorway. This merchandise is intended for the parallel market, including that of social networks, where cigarettes are traded at almost half price. According to tobacco companies, orders on social networks explain the drop in their revenue, with sales down 8.2% in 2023.
Buyers face prosecution
Cigarettes purchased outside the official circuit are even more harmful than traditional cigarettes. To stop trafficking, customs are increasing seizures. It has created specialized brigades, made up of agents who infiltrate networks under pseudonyms to bring down traffickers. “The purchase of tobacco on the Internet is completely prohibited (…) potential buyers are liable to fines or even legal proceedings”explains Bruno Rayne, from the Annecy regional customs directorate.
