Algeria: smugglers to get 10 years in jail

Algeria’s justice ministry stepped up measures against fuel and subsidized food smuggling which causes about $2 billion loss to the Public Treasury. Of it, $1.3 billion was lost due to the smuggling of about 1.5 billion liters of refined materials. According to the new smuggling draft law, smugglers will get 10 years prison and a 100 million centimes fine.

People’s National Assembly is expected to discuss the modified draft law to counter smuggling. It is meant to criminalize some dangerous acts which used to be considered as no more than breaches.

The government decided to classify fuel trade, purchasing, storing and transporting in customs area as law violation.

According to the penal code provisions, this suggestion is justified by the impact of those crimes on national economy. It has also become a form of borders-crossing organized crime and linked to other forms of crime such as terrorism funding, weapons and drug trade.

The legislative text will punish criminals with a prison sentence from two to ten years and a fine equal to 10 times of the confiscated merchandise and transportation means.

Anyone involved in smuggled fuel transporting will be banned from commercial or handcraft register. Tools used in the crime will be confiscated by the Public Treasury.