13/04/2010 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 13 April, the European Commission announced the results of the customs operation, Matthew II, which has allowed many counterfeit or contraband products to be seized during about one hundred confiscations between 24 November and 3 December 2009, mainly cars and private lorries. For example, over €16 million worth of contraband cigarettes were seized, as well as 1.5 tonnes of cannabis and 20 tonnes of counterfeit perfumes. Piloted by the Czech Republic, this operation rallied 24 member states, several third countries (Norway, Serbia, Russia), as well as assistance from the Commission's European Anti-Fraud Office. The success of this operation is partly due to the use of a secure system of information exchange in real time. (M.B./transl.jl)