The SBU jointly with the Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs blocked large-scale cigarette smuggling into Ukraine. Part of the smuggled cigarettes were planned to be transited to Europe.

Thanks to the received information, including information from foreign partners, the SBU officers exposed a cargo of cigarettes of a well-known world brand with a total weight of almost 16 tons in the Odesa Sea Trade Port. The goods arrived illegally at a private container terminal. The cost of the seized goods amounted to at least UAH 20,000,000 (USD 711,743) at the lowest wholesale prices of the Ukrainian “black market”.

The smuggled cigarettes were disguised as textiles to evade customs duties and other mandatory payments.

The investigation is ongoing to confiscate the smuggled goods.

The operation was conducted with the assistance of the Department for Counteracting Customs Offenses of the Odesa Customs of the State Customs Service of Ukraine.