Airport Customs officers at Bandaranaike International Airport in Katunayake have arrested two foreign nationals accused of attempting to smuggle a large consignment of cigarettes into Sri Lanka, NewsFirst reported.
The suspects, aged 28 and 48, were taken into custody after officers discovered 50,200 cigarettes packed into 251 cartons and concealed within four travel bags. The seized stock, identified as Chinese-manufactured products, is valued at approximately Rs. 7.53 million.
According to Customs, the pair had arrived in Sri Lanka earlier on Tuesday from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and were apprehended during routine inspection procedures at the airport. The suspects and the seized goods have been handed over for further investigation.
The detention is the latest in a sustained run of high-value tobacco seizures at Katunayake. In April, customs officers arrested a Chinese businessman carrying more than 229,000 cigarettes worth Rs. 34.47 million on a flight from Bangkok, and separately seized a Rs. 38 million consignment flown in from Dubai. The airport has also seen a parallel wave of other contraband busts, including the recent seizure of 87 undeclared mobile phones from arriving Chinese nationals.
High excise duties on imported cigarettes make smuggled stocks highly profitable on Sri Lanka’s domestic market, and authorities have identified BIA as a persistent entry point for tobacco trafficked from Chinese and Southeast Asian suppliers. Investigations into the latest case are continuing.
