COIMBATORE: Two persons were arrested in Erode for smuggling Rs 12 lakh worth tobacco products from Karnataka and Kerala on Sunday night. The Hasanur police intercepted a load carrier vehicle passing through Karapallam check post on the Tamil Nadu-Karnataka border.

Upon suspicion, police examined the huge stock of sacks and found them to be in possession of banned tobacco products weighing around one tonne.

There were around 38 sacks worth about Rs 12 lakh. Therefore, the police arrested Akbar (44) from Palakkad in Kerala and Sivamurthy (32) from Samraj Nagar in Karnataka. Police inquiries revealed that the duo had smuggled the tobacco products from Karnataka to Kerala to be supplied in retail in Tamil Nadu. The load carrier vehicle along with the huge load of tobacco products were seized by police.