Rabat- Customs officials at Tanger-Med Port said they had arrested a French national for allegedly attempting to smuggle rare Moroccan antiques to France.
Sources from the Port quoted by daily Akhbar Al Yaoum in its issue of Thursday, January 30th, said that Port officials had seized 13 paintings on Monday, which were believed to be on their way to be smuggled to France.
Officials said they transferred the seized items to a bureau of expertise inside the port to identify their true historical and financial value. According to preliminary estimates, the value of the paintings is believed to be worth millions of Dirhams.
The same source went on to add that the man suspected of smuggling valuable antiques did not have any receipts that prove he bought the items from the city of Marrakech as he claimed.
To make sure, the Port authorities sent a letter to customs officials in the city of Marrakech requesting them to investigate the source of the items.
The Port authorities confiscated the man’s passport and his car until the end of the investigation, added the daily.
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