Six men were detained in a SIS-Customs-PCCOCS operation, as a result of 20 searches for several illicit activities, including smuggling with 600,000 cigarettes and 4,000 liters of alcohol, which they intended to sell in Romania.
The activity of the members of the criminal group was documented for 3 months by the SIS and Customs officers, in coordination with the PCCOCS prosecutors, starting from September 2021. According to the case materials, the six persons transported the cigarettes to special locations, avoiding border crossings where the checks are more rigorous, due to the technical equipment. At the same time, the criminal proceedings revealed not only the acts of smuggling but also the storage locations for the products.
Considering the gathered evidence and results of searches at their homes, cars, garages and stalls at the “Central Market” in Chișinău, all the six men were placed in preventive detention for 30 days, at the request of the PCCOCS prosecutors.
During the investigations, the SIS-Customs-PCCOCS joint team focused its efforts on dismantling the entire criminal scheme. Therefore, the team found the locations of origin of the smuggled goods and the organizers of the illegal activity. Also, it seized two cars used for smuggling and three luxury cars.
The investigation continues in order to fully uncover all the circumstances of the case.
