WILLEMSTAD - The Public Prosecution Service (OM) will not conduct a criminal investigation into the suspected embezzlement of confiscated cigarettes. This was announced by the Minister of Finance, Javier Silvania in a statement.
Recently confiscated cigarettes were stolen from a storage facility in the customs building at Handelskade in Punda. The confiscated cigarettes were stored in a designated temporary storage area for destruction.
The suspected 544 embezzled cigarettes were part of the stock of 2,054 cigarettes that were seized by Customs during inspections due to the absence of excise stamps. The incident was investigated by Customs, and a report was filed regarding the incident.
The OM has now decided not to pursue a criminal investigation. This decision takes into account the number of individuals who had access to the area where the cigarettes were stored.
According to the minister, Customs has implemented several preventive measures to avoid such situations in the future. The storage facility in question will no longer be used for temporary storage, and confiscated goods will now be promptly transferred to the government warehouse for immediate destruction.