Leonidas Paschalidis, Deputy Secretary General of the CCCI, spoke about the smuggling of tobacco products from the occupied territories on SIGMA's show "Mesimeri kai Kati".
"Smuggling has become a scourge and I'm not just talking about cigarettes," he said.
As for tobacco products and especially tobacco for twisted cigarettes, the price in the free areas is much higher than in the occupied ones and thus creates unequal competition with the legal tobacco companies in the Republic of Cyprus, he noted.
As he said, the devaluation of the Turkish pound has "helped", as these operations are now even more profitable.
He noted that there seems to be a circuit that smuggles, while there are individual cases.
"Not only are there problems for companies with all the consequences, but the state is also losing revenue as these products are taxed," he said.
He noted that the CCCI has raised the issue with the Customs with letters, asking for stricter measures.
"We have heard cases where they are delivered through packages, or at home, if possible," he said.
In his own position, the Spokesperson of the Police, Christos Andreou, noted that when the Members are informed about the trafficking of illegal tobacco products, they carry out checks in cooperation with the Customs Department.
In recent times, large quantities have been identified both during their transfer from the occupied to the free areas, while recently warehouses with such products have also been identified.
From time to time, more people are detected smuggling these products.