The Contentious Chamber of the High Court of Justice has overturned an €11,132 fine imposed on a man accused of smuggling cigars, ruling that no offence had been committed. The case dates back six years, when the defendant and two friends returned from Cuba with 113 cigars—within the legal allowance of 50 per person—and later sent them as a gift to a friend in Palma de Mallorca. Although customs authorities seized the package and imposed a heavy fine, the court found there had been neither fraud nor concealment, as the cigars were legally imported and openly declared to the transport company. The ruling orders repayment of the €12,245 already paid, plus interest, and the return of the seized tobacco.
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