Thousands of cigarette packs washed ashore along the Noord-Holland coast between Wijk aan Zee and Camperduin. So far, 23,000 cigarettes have been recovered, with the majority of them being L&M brand.
When local lifeguards responded to a potential drowning report, they found a garbage bag floating offshore.
“When we opened the bag on the beach, it turned out to be filled with cartons of cigarettes,” Ron Zentveld from the Egmond lifeguard service. The bag contained about 600 packs. Other cartons were later found by campers and beachgoers.
“They handed the cigarettes over to us, and we then gave them to the police,” Zentveld said. Some of the recovered cigarettes were discarded in the trash.
Customs has confirmed that the cigarettes may be smuggled goods and the incident is being treated as a potential case of illegal tobacco import.
“We’ve never seen this before,” said a customs spokesperson. “You don’t want this on the beach. We’re trying to get a full picture of what has washed up and determine where the cigarette packs came from.”
According to new sources, the products are likely “illicit whites,” or cigarettes that were legally produced abroad but smuggled into the Netherlands and sold outside official channels.
However, because the cigarettes were soaked and no longer usable, customs isn’t sure whether they were actually smuggled. “The cartons were soaking wet. That’s why we’re not entirely sure this is a smuggling case,” said customs. “They could also be part of a shipment lost overboard by a ship’s crew.”
Customs is continuing to investigate. “Because more packs may wash ashore, we’re continuing our search.”
