A POLISH lorry driver has been jailed after being caught smuggling cigarettes through Harwich International Port.

Marcin Jerzy Mikolajczyk, 30, from Sulechow in Poland, was stopped by Border Force officers at Harwich International Port on August 24.

Mikolajczyk had travelled from the Hook of Holland driving a lorry with a trailer carrying soft drinks.

A search of the vehicle uncovered 271,420 non-UK duty paid cigarettes, evading an estimated £68,850 in lost duty and taxes.

The cigarettes were concealed in the ‘coil carrier’ – a natural space below the floor level of the trailer.

The case was adopted by HM Revenue and Customs and at interview, Mikolajczyk admitted to being paid 500 euros to drive the illicit load of cigarettes into the UK.

Mikolajczyk was charged with the fraudulent evasion of excise duty and pleaded guilty during an appearance at Colchester Magistrates Court on August 25.

He was sentenced to eight weeks in prison.

Charlotte Mann, Border Force's assistant director at Harwich, said: “This was quite an elaborate attempt to circumvent our controls and its detection is testament to the hard work and vigilance of our officers.

“We work closely with partner agencies like HMRC and if you are caught attempting to smuggle tobacco into the country we will not hesitate to refer the case for prosecution.”

Paul Barton, assistant director of HMRC's Fraud Investigation Service, added: “This type of criminal activity harms the livelihoods of honest shopkeepers in the UK, but disrupting criminal trade is at the heart of our strategy to clampdown on the illicit tobacco market, which costs UK taxpayers around £2billion a year."

Anyone with information about suspicious tobacco or cigarette products should call the Customs Hotline on 0800 59 5000.