Vilnius residents did not manage to take away the cigarettes flown in from Belarus – border guards intervened.
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On Sunday morning, officers of the Druskininkai border post of the VSAT Varėna border unit, performing their duties near the village of Švendubrė (Druskininkai municipality), stopped a Volkswagen Crafter vehicle for inspection.
The rented van with Lithuanian license plates was driven by a 45-year-old resident of Vilnius district, accompanied by a 30-year-old Vilnius resident.
In the cargo area of the vehicle rented from the company “Bolt Drive,” border guards found four bundles wrapped in black polyethylene film. One of the bundles showed remnants of an air balloon and a gray plastic pipe about 30 cm long.
The bundles contained three cardboard boxes each with the logos of the “Neman” tobacco factory from Grodno (Belarus).
The vehicle with the cargo and both Vilnius residents were taken by VSAT officers to the Druskininkai border post. There, after dismantling the bundles and opening the boxes, 5,999 packs of cigarettes “Minsk 5 Superslims,” “NZ Gold,” and “Queen Methol” with Belarusian excise stamps were found. The value of this amount of tobacco, including all mandatory taxes in Lithuania, is more than 32,700 euros.
A pre-trial investigation has been initiated at the VSAT Varėna border unit for illegal handling of excise goods, led by a prosecutor from the 2nd Criminal Prosecution Division of the Kaunas Regional Prosecutor’s Office.
For such a criminal act, the law provides for a fine or imprisonment for up to six years.
After questioning on Monday, the court sentenced the younger Vilnius resident to 20 days and his accomplice to 15 days of detention.
The seized cigarettes and the Volkswagen Crafter vehicle are temporarily stored in one of the VSAT Varėna border unit’s facilities.
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