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Seoul seizes record 5.16 million packs of cigarettes in joint crackdown on smuggling

Published: 07 Jan. 2026, 11:22 Updated: 07 Jan. 2026, 16:08

Smuggled cigarettes seized from a trafficking ring sit in storage at the Korea Customs Service’s warehouse in southern Seoul on Dec. 2, 2025. [NEWS1]

Korea's customs agency said Wednesday it has seized a record 5.16 million packs of cigarettes smuggled out of the country through joint operations with foreign customs authorities.

The Korea Customs Service (KCS) said it uncovered and confiscated cigarettes weighing 103 tons in overseas locations after dismantling multinational cigarette smuggling networks that had used Korea as a transit hub.

The seizures were made during joint investigations conducted throughout last year in close cooperation with customs authorities from Australia, the United States and France, the KCS said.

"Cigarette smuggling, along with drug trafficking, is considered a key source of funding for criminal syndicates," said a KCS official, noting that cases involving Korea as a transshipment point have been increasing in recent years.

The seized amount is equivalent to more than one pack for over half of Korea's estimated 8 to 9 million adult smokers, the KCS said.

It also far exceeds the 3.6 million packs detected overseas between 2019 and 2021, the agency said.

The KCS said it will continue to strengthen international cooperation to prevent the country from being exploited as a logistics hub for global smuggling operations.

Yonhap