Customs Chief Commissioner

A warehouse believed to be accommodating an illegal cigarette operation was raided by the National Drug and Vice Squad last week.

However, Customs Chief Commissioner, Ray Paul, defended the Asian-owned operation, saying it was issued a licence to operate.

“They’ve been importing and only this year, they intend to go into manufacturing,” Paul said of Golden Borough Ltd.

A warehouse at the Kennedy Estate at Eight-Mile, outside Port Moresby, was under a month-long surveillance by the National Drug and Vice Squad until the bust last week.

A large, white warehouse containing cigarettes of unknown origin, including manufacturing equipment, were uncovered at the Kennedy Estate.