Criminal group specialized in illegal cigarette trafficking,

In Romania, an organized criminal group consisting of Romanian, Moldovan and Ukrainian citizens

In 2019, in Dolj County, the defendants set up a clandestine factory for the production and packaging of counterfeit cigarettes, using legal registered trademarks, as well as to some packaging likely to create confusion with those legitimately used by the trademark owners.

Subsequently, the cigarettes were put into circulation within the EU.

At the same time, it was established that the raw material and materials necessary for the manufacture of cigarettes were purchased from companies in Bulgaria and introduced in Romania through the Calafat Border Crossing Point, concealed in other categories of goods.

Following the searches, approximately 50 tons of loose tobacco, a line of chopped, fermented, crushed and dried tobacco, a printing press, materials and raw materials used in the production, assembly and packaging of cigarettes.

Also a generator was built, which being used to avoid high consumption of electricity from suppliers (in order not to detect illegal activity), 2 car assemblies consisting of tractor and semi-trailer, a van (which would have been used to transport tobacco and materials needed for its processing) and 5 vehicles.

4 workers of Ukrainian nationality were also detected, who allegedly took care of the cigarette production process.