Video: Counterfeit Excise Stamp Cigarettes Sold with Fake Brand

The Investigation and Operational Intelligence Department of the State Revenue Committee has received information regarding the sale of cigarettes stamped with counterfeit excise stamps and fake brands in various regions of Armenia and the city of Yerevan.

In response, the Investigation and Operational Intelligence Department has undertaken a comprehensive series of operational and investigative measures.

Specifically, employees of the department uncovered a total of 1,274 boxes of apparently counterfeit cigarettes stamped with fake excise stamps during inspections at the locations of three retail enterprises operating in Yerevan and the regions.

It was revealed that the mentioned enterprises acquired the counterfeit cigarettes without the necessary accompanying documents, at prices significantly lower than the wholesale prices offered by the official representative of the corresponding brand. They sold them at prices lower than those available in retail enterprises, thereby harming the legal business activities of the representatives of the respective cigarette brand.

Thus, the actions of the individuals involved contain the elements of the crime specified in Article 289 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia, namely the manufacture, storage, transportation, shipment, acquisition, use, or sale of counterfeit excise stamps or labels for the purpose of sale.

Materials are being prepared regarding the obvious signs of a crime to initiate criminal proceedings.

The Investigation and Operational Intelligence Department of the State Revenue Committee urges citizens and businesses to refrain from the manufacture, transportation, and use of counterfeit excise stamps or labels, or from marking tobacco products with them; otherwise, those individuals will face the full severity of the law.