JAKARTA - The Directorate General of Customs and Excise (DJBC) of the Ministry of Finance reported that it had eradicated the circulation of illegal cigarettes by cracking down on 160 million cigarettes without tax tape with an estimated value of Rp399.2 billion in an illegal cigarette storage warehouse in Pekanbaru, Riau.
Director General of Customs and Excise Djaka Budi Utama said that the crackdown on illegal cigarettes was a tangible manifestation of the state's presence in enforcing the law in the field of taxes while protecting the public's interests.
"This action against illegal cigarettes is a form of commitment by Customs in maintaining state revenues, creating a healthy business climate, and protecting the public from the circulation of illegal taxable goods," he said in a statement, Wednesday, January 7.
The action was carried out on Tuesday, January 6 at 14.25 WIB, the Joint Team of the Directorate of Enforcement and Investigation of the Customs Headquarters, the Riau Customs Regional Office, and the Strategic Intelligence Agency (BAIS) of the TNI took action against a warehouse used as a storage place for illegal cigarettes without being bothered by the tax tape in the Pekanbaru area, Riau.
Djaka said that the action was the result of the synergy of supervision and analysis of central and regional customs intelligence, which was strengthened with public information, and was followed up through an integrated intelligence operation for more than four months through cross-unit and agency coordination.
From the location, officers secured 16,000 cartons of illegal cigarettes of various brands with a total of around 160 million cigarettes.
Based on the provisional calculation, the value of goods is estimated at IDR 399.2 billion, and the potential loss of the state from the tax sector is estimated at IDR 213.76 billion.
The value of goods and the amount of potential state losses that can be obtained after counting. The illegal cigarettes are indicated as illegal imported cigarettes that are entered through the East Coast of Sumatra and are being stored in the Pekanbaru area, Riau, to be distributed to the circulation area in Indonesia.
Djaka said that in addition to securing evidence, officers also secured the parties concerned for further examination in accordance with the provisions of laws and regulations.
"The entire series of enforcement activities took place in a safe and controlled condition with the support of security from the TNI BAIS personnel," he said.
Nationally, throughout 2025, the Customs Service has carried out 31,354 enforcement actions with a value of goods being taken action of Rp. 9.8 trillion and the enforcement actions year on year compared to 2024 experienced an increase of 2.1 percent in terms of the value of goods being taken action or in nominal terms increased by almost Rp. 210 billion.
He added that this shows an increase in the quality of enforcement and more effective supervision.
According to him, not only stopping at the enforcement process, the Customs also intensified the handling of cases through investigations, a total of 266 investigations were carried out during 2025 and the imposition of the ultimate remedy fine of IDR 211.62 billion for 2,241 cases.
In terms of illegal excise goods, nationally throughout 2025, Customs has carried out 20,102 enforcement actions with an illegal cigarette volume of 1.4 billion cigarettes and is the highest number of illegal cigarette bans in the history of customs.
According to him, with a record of around 160 million cigarettes, this action in the Riau region contributed almost 11 percent of the total national action in 2025, so it has a strategic meaning in efforts to eradicate illegal cigarettes nationally.
Djaka added that the success of supervision and enforcement is inseparable from the synergy between agencies and the active role of the community.
"We invite the public to continue to be partners with the Customs in supervision by reporting indications of illegal cigarette circulation in the surrounding area," he said.
He emphasized that the Customs Service would continue to strengthen supervision and law enforcement in the field of customs as part of efforts to protect state revenues, support compliant industries, and provide protection to the public.
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