A spate of seizures of large quantities of tobacco products following coordinated police raids in Ayia Napa, Paphos, and Nicosia.
According to the Customs Department, on August 26, 2026, officials were informed by members of the Famagusta Customs Office that, following an investigation they conducted in the Ayia Napa area, they had located large quantities of tobacco products, which they seized for counting and confiscation.
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Upon counting, it was determined that the items consisted of 51 cartons of heated cigarettes and hookah tobacco packs weighing a total of 35 kilograms, which did not bear the warning about the dangers of smoking in Greek and Turkish, nor did they have the security feature or the unique traceability code, indications that they were duty-free.
The tobacco products were seized and will undergo the prescribed destruction procedure. Larnaca Customs is further investigating the case in cooperation with the Famagusta Customs Office, with the primary goal of identifying the owner of the tobacco products and apprehending him.
On August 28, 2026, officials from the Paphos Customs Office, in cooperation with members of the Police, following an assessment of intelligence, conducted a search of a kiosk in Polis Chrysochous, operated by a 47-year-old Syrian national.
During the inspection of the kiosk, they found 25 cartons, each containing 200 cigarettes; 3 cartons of heated cigarettes, each containing 200 units; packages of tobacco for hand-rolled cigarettes weighing a total of 2 kilograms and 650 grams, and packages of tobacco for hookahs weighing a total of 3 kilograms and 250 grams, which did not bear the warning about the dangers of smoking in Greek and Turkish, nor did they bear the security feature or the unique traceability code, indicating that they were untaxed.
The tobacco products were confiscated and will undergo the prescribed destruction procedure. The suspect was initially arrested for the offenses committed in flagrante delicto, but was later released after his proposal for an out-of-court settlement of the case was accepted, with the payment of €4,000.
Also, on August 28, 2026, officers from the Customs Investigation Division were informed by members of the Nicosia Customs Office that, following a search they conducted at the residence of a 60-year-old Greek Cypriot in the Nicosia district, pursuant to a judicial search warrant, they had discovered large quantities of tobacco products.
During the subsequent count by Customs Department officials, it was determined that the haul consisted of 361 cartons, each containing 200 cigarettes, 68 packs of cigarettes each, 111 boxes of heated cigarettes, each containing 200 pieces, tobacco for rolling cigarettes with a total weight of 1 kilogram, packages of pipe tobacco weighing a total of 595 grams, 30 cigars and 1,400 cigarillos that did not bear the warning about the dangers of smoking in Greek and Turkish, nor the security feature and unique traceability code—indications that they were duty-free.
The tobacco products were seized and will undergo the prescribed destruction process. The suspect, who has been the subject of numerous previous investigations by Customs and the Police for similar offenses, was arrested and will appear before the Nicosia District Court for the issuance of a detention order.
SEE ALSO: VIDEO: 60-year-old man in Nicosia turned his home into a warehouse for illegal tobacco products | AlphaNews
