Brussels, 18/03/2008 (Agence Europe) - An international criminal gang responsible for smuggling millions of cigarettes into the EU from former Soviet Union countries and China, to the detriment of the EU budget, has come to a dramatic end with the arrest of 26 people in Poland and Germany, including the presumed main organisers of the smuggling gang. This fortunate outcome comes after months of cooperation between the European Anti-Fruad Office (OLAF), the Polish Centralne Biuro Sledcze (CBS, Central Investigation Bureau of the National Police), and Germany's Zollkriminalamt (headquarters of the German Customs Investigation Services).
“This success in the fight against international cigarette smuggling demonstrates once again the importance of close European cooperation of law enforcement agencies”, said Franz-Hermann Brüner, OLAF Director General.
In addition to the arrests, the authorities in Poland seized nearly 7 million cigarettes, a lorry that was in the process of being loaded with contraband cigarettes, nearly €3 million in cash and 9 kilos of gold and jewellery following a series of coordinated searches in warehouses and private dwellings. The bank accounts of 29 suspects have been frozen and personal property, including cars and houses, has been seized. The Polish authorities stressed that the success of the operation is the direct result of months of investigation and excellent cooperation between law enforcement agencies and OLAF, and is a clear example of the determination to tackle crossborder crime. (L.C.)