Port customs seize 53m cigarettes

Seized cigarettes are shredded to fuel electricity generation

Customs officers have seized 53 million counterfeit cigarettes over three weeks of surveillance at a container port.

The cigarettes were found in containers at Felixstowe Port in Suffolk, and had arrived from China, Malaysia and other Far East countries.

They were described on goods manifests as metal furniture, scarves, hats, gloves or coil heaters.

Kevin Sayer, of HM Revenue and Customs, said: "Millions of illicit tobacco products have been stopped."

The cigarettes were destined for illegal sale in the UK and in Europe, and Mr Sayer urged anyone with information about counterfeit tobacco to contact the Revenue and Customs hotline.

The cigarettes and their packaging will be shredded and incinerated to generate electricity for the national grid.