Tegal Customs Intensifies Operation to Crack Illegal Cigarettes in Pekalongan Raya

Tegal Customs Office, Central Java, continues to intensify the Illegal Cigarette Raid operation to suppress the circulation of cigarettes without tax tape which are still rampant in the former Keresidenan Pekalongan area.

Head of the Tegal Customs Information and Information Section, Yusuf Mahrizal, in Pekalongan, Sunday, said that the level of circulation of illegal cigarettes in the area was still high so that it was necessary to strengthen the enforcement operation.

According to Yusuf, the Customs and Excise Service will continue to take firm action, including the application of administrative sanctions and fines, against perpetrators of violations.

"We will continue to take enforcement action. The goal is to suppress the circulation of illegal cigarettes and at the same time create a deterrent effect," he said.

He explained that most of the enforcement was carried out on the distribution route, especially on highways and toll roads that are often used as delivery routes.

Based on the results of the operation, around 90 percent of illegal cigarettes were successfully secured before reaching the level of retailers, such as grocery stores or stalls.

"Most of the findings are in the distribution channel. The goods have not reached the retail traders because we have stopped them first," he explained.

Throughout 2025, Tegal Customs recorded that it had secured around 20.4 million illegal cigarettes from various operations, both on the highway and from circulation at the level of traders.

The number, said Yusuf, is relatively the same as the achievement of enforcement in the previous year which was also in the range of 20.4 million cigarettes.

"Because the number of findings is still quite high until the end of 2025, the target for the Illegal Cigarette Raid operation in 2026 will remain the same as last year and we will optimize it," he said.

He assessed that the large number of findings showed that the circulation of illegal cigarettes was still a serious problem in the Pekalongan Raya area.

"This condition requires consistent and sustainable efforts, both through enforcement in the field and preventive measures such as socialization to the community," he concluded.