Police in Bugesera District on Wednesday foiled an attempt to smuggle 20 crates of alcohol and arrested two suspects involved.

Acting on a tip-off from residents, Police intercepted Germaine Barakagwira and his driver Ramadan Nyandwi in Nyamata Sector, while on their way to Kigali with 20 crates of untaxed beer brands.

The alcohol was seized and the suspects are currently held at Nyamata Police Station as investigations continue.

The Police Spokesperson for Eastern Province, Inspector Emmanuel Kayigi, noted that Police was committed to fighting economic crimes, including tax evasion and smuggling, which are detrimental to the economy.

Police conduct awareness campaigns against such economic crimes and partners with the business community and concerned institutions to fight smuggling.

Many operations have been successful in limiting this crime and many of those involved have been arrested, he said.

"Let us continue working together through community policing and ensure smuggling of alcoholic beverages is checked in time.”

He added that on top of cheating legitimate business, those who evade tax by smuggling goods into the country usually have unverified products that could be harmful to consumers.

"Smuggling undermines the growth of the local industry and discourages legal imports of verified goods, on top of cheating the country of tax. We can, therefore, overcome it through strong collaboration that is built around the provision of timely information whenever there is suspicion of such acts,” Kayigi said.

Police have a unit-Revenue Protection Department - attached to the national tax body, RRA, that fights fraud and smuggling.

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