Operation Ocean seizes $4.4m of illicit tobacco

Over 20 tonnes of illicit tobacco valued at $4.4 million have been seized by the ATO and Victoria Police at a property in North East Shepparton, Victoria.

The tobacco was found and destroyed following a search warrant conducted last Thursday, which revealed a mature tobacco crop spanning nearly six acres, the equivalent of approximately 90 tennis courts.

In a statement from the ATO, it was noted that the warrant was part of Operation Ocean, and officers had also seized several trays of tobacco seedlings from the property.

Jade Hawkins, ATO assistant commissioner, said the destruction of the tobacco crops demonstrated the ATO’s commitment to removing illicit tobacco from the community.

“Detecting, disrupting and dismantling the illicit tobacco trade is a priority for the ATO. These operations are run by criminal syndicates, not farmers or producers,” she said.

“They put the Australian community at risk when they use profits from these activities to fund other serious crimes. A wave of illicit tobacco has been stopped in its tracks, with this warrant activity surfacing thanks to a tip-off from the community.”

According to the ATO, Operation Ocean added to the 90 completed illicit tobacco operational activities between 1 July 2018 and 30 June 2024, and that community tip-offs were one of the ATO’s best sources of information.

Within this period and across the 90 completed illicit tobacco activities, the operations were made up of 19 illicit tobacco taskforce operations, 31 ATO specific operations and 40 state law enforcement support operations.

Overall, these operations resulted in 627 acres of illicit tobacco crops being located, seized and destroyed with a total weight of 3,746,240 kilograms, 39,224 kilograms of loose-leaf tobacco located, seized and destroyed, 21,759,340 cigarettes located, seized and destroyed as well as a total estimated equivalent tobacco duty foregone value of above $723 million.

The ATO said it encouraged the community to continue notifying it of crucial information to assist in the fight against illicit tobacco and notify them of any signs that land was being used to grow illicit tobacco, including construction activities along creeks and rivers on private and public land, unexplained and potentially unlawful use of water resources, vans with no markings loaded with cardboard boxes at odd hours of the day, sound of machinery running at night and excessive security measures.

Hawkins said if it was suspected that illicit tobacco was being grown, manufactured or sold in a local community, it could be confidentially reported to the ATO.

“Involvement in illicit tobacco production is a serious offence. There are hefty penalties for possessing, selling, buying, manufacturing, or producing illicit tobacco, including jail terms for up to 10 years imprisonment,” she said.

“This type of activity takes vital money away from the community and places it directly into the hands of organised criminals who mistakenly think they can sail under the radar. It’s illegal to grow tobacco in Australia without the appropriate excise licence and currently no one is licensed to do so.”