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Aussie man caught speeding also found with illegal cigarettes worth 230,000 USD

Xinhua, April 27, 2016 Adjust font size:

An Australian man has been charged with pocketing the proceeds of crime after police in Victoria intercepted his vehicle with more than 230,000 U.S dollars' worth of illegal cigarettes.

The 35-year-old man from Melbourne was pulled over by highway patrol officers near the town of Wangaratta when he was caught exceeding the speed limit by 10 km per hour.

But when police performed a routine inspection of the vehicle, they were surprised to find 20 large cardboard boxes full of the illegal smokes. Along with his speeding fine, the man was taken into custody and has been ordered to face a Wangaratta court in June.

Wangaratta Senior Constable Jason Brown said illegal cigarettes were becoming more of a problem in Australia as they are not tested and approved by the Australian government.

"These cigarettes are obviously processed offshore, they haven't been tested or checked to be safe to smoke," Brown told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) on Wednesday.

Brown said police had noticed an increase in the number of illegal cigarettes flooding the market due to high price that consumers pay in store.

Australians pay up to 20 U.S dollars per pack due to high taxes associated with the product.

"It's not a common problem but it does appear that of recent times more intercepts like this are being made and more tobacco in this type of situation is being discovered," Brown said. Endit