A total of 396 boxes of duty free cigarettes and heated tobacco products were seized in Engomi, Nicosia during an operation targeting the illegal possession and sale of tobacco products, police said on Friday.

A 40-year-old man was arrested after police stopped him on the suspicion he was transporting the products in a car on Wednesday and Thursday.

A search of the vehicle found 301 boxes of heated cigarettes, 95 cartons of cigarettes, €2,400 in cash and two mobile phones.

Police said the operation followed a tip off about the illegal possession, trafficking and sale of duty free tobacco products and the fraudulent evasion of VAT.

The man was taken to the customs department in Nicosia, where the seized products and vehicle were handed over.

Customs officers issued him an extrajudicial payment notice of €20,000 for possession of tobacco products on which tax had not been paid.