Europe’s Biggest Illegal Tobacco Gang Busted

POLICE in Romania have busted Europe’s biggest illegal tobacco gang with the help of Spain’s Guardia Civil and the EU’s Anti-Fraud Office.

Fifty people were arrested following raids on 40 properties across Romania, with huge amounts of production machinery and illegal tobacco products seized from warehouses, businesses, and homes across the country.

The Guardia Civil’s Central Operation Unit assisted Romanian and European authorities in the operation, and the gang reportedly once ran illegal Spanish cigarette factories in Toledo, Sevilla, and Cordoba. Those arrested are of Romanian and Moldovan nationality, though their operation spanned the majority of the continent.

The recent series of raids and arrests mark the successful conclusion of a Europe-wide crackdown on the lucrative illegal tobacco trade. Beginning in 2017, the operation has seen 200 arrests across Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, Greece, Czech Republic, Italy, Spain, and Belgium. Overall a staggering 95 million illegal cigarettes were seized alongside 300 tonnes of tobacco.

According to the European Anti-fraud Office, illegal tobacco smuggling drains public budgets, poses serious health risks to consumers, and undermine public health campaigns. The booming trade reached its heyday during the 1990s when Balkan gangs took advantage of the collapse of Yugoslavia to flood Europe with illegal cigarettes.

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