Krefeld - The duty on the Lower Rhine has exceeded last year in revenue for the first time the billion mark.
Through taxes, duties and fines, revenues rose for the Treasury compared to the year 2006 by around 119 million euros to 1.02 billion euros.
In the area of application of the Main Customs Office Krefeld 31,000 vehicles and 47,000 people were tested for narcotics and prohibited goods out. Around 120 kilos of hashish, marijuana and heroin were seized and destroyed 14.5 million untaxed cigarettes, said the Authority on Friday on its "balance sheet".
7300 criminal proceedings were instituted for drug offenses, reported the head of customs. The courts imposed in the context of imprisonment of 52 years.
The audit considered illegal in 2007, also about 1,500 companies and more than 10,000 employees at work. These officials uncovered an illegal caused by damage of almost 17 million euros.
One of the recent successes: the control group Kaldenkirchen checked on 22 February at the parking lot Tomm-Heath at A 40 a Lithuanian truck coming from the Netherlands. In it, the customs police 8.2 million cigarettes in the Chinese trademark "Jing Ling discovered.
