Cruise passengers arrested for smuggling 749 cases of cigarettes
Perhaps it was the 10 pieces of luggage that was suspicious.
Usually, the customs process for people with an American passport getting off a cruise ship just takes a few seconds. You look at the facial recognition and it tells you to walk through.
Even on the rare occasions where you get flagged for more inspection, it usually just involves physically showing your passport to an agent. In rare situations, a customs agent may look through your bag and there are forms you need to fill out if you're bringing back over $10,000 in cash.
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Some passengers, however, do get extra scrutiny.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers assigned to the Los Angeles/Long Beach Seaport discovered 749 cartons of illegally imported cigarettes concealed in 10 pieces of luggage from a couple arriving in a cruise ship from Ensenada, Mexico on April 17.
On that day, two female passengers traveling together, disembarked an ocean liner arriving to Long Beach Cruise Ship Terminal, and presented themselves for CBP inspection. During the inspection officers discovered 10 pieces of luggage full of cigarettes.
Although the travelers presented purchase receipts, they were unable to provide the appropriate permits to import such a quantity of tobacco products.
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You can bring back cigarettes for personal use
Cruise ships sell cartons of cigarettes onboard and you can buy them duty free in ports, which can mean prices much lower than in the U.S.
You cannot, however, buy cigarettes for the purpose of resale.
"Large quantities of cigarettes are considered 'commercial' not personal use; therefore, an importer permit from the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) is required. In addition, tobacco product labels must meet FDA standards, such as including nicotine warnings and accurate product descriptions," according to a CBP press release.
This is an area that's taken very seriously.
“The importation of tobacco products is highly regulated from both tax and consumer safety perspectives,” said Cheryl M. Davies, CBP Director of Field Operations in Los Angeles. “Travelers who intentionally disregard U.S. importation laws and regulations often pay a high price.”
The examination of the 10 pieces of luggage resulted in the discovery of 326 cartons of Newport 100’s, 58 cartons of Newport regulars,112 cartons of Marlboro Red, 43 cartons of Marlboro Silver, and 210 cartons of Marlboro Gold cigarettes.
Based on a low-end estimate of $80 dollars a carton in the state of California, the total value of the cigarettes is estimated to be $59,920.
All 749 cartons were seized and will be destroyed under CBP supervision.
The report did not share what legal action the two women will face.
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