Cigarettes smuggling at Porumbesti

Five people are incriminated by Romanian Border Police officers for smuggling. At the residence of one of them 2,900 packages of cigarettes, Ukrainian made, just brought into Romania illegally, over the green border, were detected.

On 24 th of October 2011, around 21.30, Border Police officers within Halmeu Border Police Sector, detected three people walking from the border line towards Romania, Porumbesti area. They were carrying two big boxes per each. In order not to be apprehended by Border Police officers, the three people started to run, reaching Porumbesti area.

Border Police officers continued the investigations and in the aforementioned village, Porumbesti, in an annex of a building, detected a person, Arnold Nicolae T., 22 years old. Later on, at Ferencz. T residence, 22 years old, from Porumbesti, our colleagues detected six big boxes wrapped in black foil, containing 2,900 packages of cigarettes, Ukrainian made: 2,500 packages of Viceroy cigarettes and 400 packages of Ronson cigarettes, valuing about 12,470 LEI.

Arnold Nicolae T. and Ferencz T. were led to the premises of Halmeu Border Police Sector for being interviewed. They stated that Ferencz T. was the one transporting the cigarettes from the border line to his place in Porumbesti and Arnold T. had to survey the area of the smuggling in order to signal the presence of Border Police officers. Three different people were also involved in this crime: Jozsef E., 28 years old together with Ioan S., 33 years old who were supposed to transport the cigarettes from the border line to the aforementioned building and Istvan S., 23 years old having the role of surveying the area in order to signal the presence of Border Police officers.

The cigarettes were to be sold on Romania’s territory and the money to be split into four to the people involved in this crime. Border Police officers seized the whole amount of cigarettes, and Ferencz T., Jozsef E., Istvan S. and Ioan S. are being incriminated for complicity to smuggling and fiscal evasion. Arnold Nicolae E. is being incriminated for complicity to smuggling also. The investigations are in process, being informed the Ukrainian authorities about this event.