Following several days of surveillance, tracking, and intelligence gathering specifically aimed at identifying individuals involved in the transport and sale of contraband goods, the Ministry explained that a joint operation by the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, and SMEs (MICM) and the Specialized Corps for the Control of Fuels and Trade in Goods (CECCOM) was deployed from Santiago to Montecristi after receiving information that led to the interception of a truck transporting 6.9 million Dominican pesos worth of contraband cigarettes from Haiti.

The interception occurred on the main road in the municipality of Villa Vásquez. A black Mack dump truck was illegally transporting 58 cartons of Capital Rouge brand cigarettes. "Each carton contained 10,000 cigarettes, for a total of 580,000 units," the Ministry stated, adding that the value of this product represents significant tax fraud, harming Dominican state revenue.

The vehicle and seized goods were transferred under military guard to the CECCOM headquarters, where they were handed over to the Legal Deposits Sub-Directorate for legal proceedings and prosecution as provided for by current regulations.

S/ iciHaiti