Correspondence by Peter Semakula, Karuma Enforcement
The Northern Customs Enforcement team has for long particularly been embroiled in endless battles with cigarette smugglers. Despite the significant losses incurred by smugglers due to interception and destruction of contraband tobacco products, a few smugglers have clung to their barrels, adopting instead complex concealment mechanisms that can hardly be detected.
Fortunately, the Northern enforcement team had cast a wide range confidential informant network that enabled them capture a significant harvest trailed all the way from Gulu City recently.
In the dead of the night, the Karuma tactical base antennas picked up on intel about a box-body truck Registration Number UBL 096P that had concealed cigarettes and tobacco in sacks bundled with charcoal.
The informer revealed that the truck was holed up in Gulu waiting for the cover of night to proceed to Kampala thus avoiding detection. Committed, the informer braved the cold of the night and stealthy followed the target all the way to Karuma check point, identifying the target once the vehicle arrived.
The driver and the turn-man confidently declared charcoal to Karuma officers with straight poker faces once questioned about what was loaded on their truck. Offloading and verification of the cargo was the only way to disapprove the duo.
Upon verification, the team discovered 1,250 bombas x 200 sticks of Chinese assorted brands of cigarettes and 13 bags x 29 kg of chewing tobacco concealed in the charcoal.
The duo were taken in together with the vehicle of conveyance and the contraband. Offence management is underway.
