Internationale conferentie over fraude in de tabaksindustrie (en)
Combating the international trade in contraband and counterfeit cigarettes has been the focus of an international operational conference hosted by the European Anti-Fraud Office i (OLAF) and the Maltese Customs Authority. The conference, which helps to cement operational relationships between the EU Member States and other countries, took place in St Julian’s Bay, Malta.
The operational conference was attended by investigators from all 27 Member States, as well as law enforcement agents from Croatia, Turkey, Israel, and Australia. The World Customs Organization (WCO) and Europol i also participated. The main focus of discussions this year was the new trends in smuggling and the challenges faced in different regions of Europe. There were also presentations by an official from the Criminal Assets Bureau in Ireland as well as by representatives from Philip Morris International (PMI) and Japan Tobacco International (JTI) as part of the on-going cooperation between the Commission and 26 Member States under the Agreements which were concluded in 2004 and 2007 respectively.
This is the thirteenth year that OLAF’s Task Group Cigarettes has organised an international conference to help to cement operational relationships between the Member States and other countries so that there can be rapid exchanges of operational information to target smuggling and counterfeiting, which result in substantial losses of revenue for Member States and the European Union.
In 2007 OLAF was notified by the Member States of seizures of 4.7 billion cigarettes, indicating that actual losses of taxes and duties due to the total amount of cigarette smuggling are likely to be several billion Euros.
Alessandro Butticé
Spokesman of the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF)
Tel : +32 (0)2 296.5425
Fax : +32 (0)2 299.8101
E-mail:olaf-press@ec.europa.eu