Cigarettes with Bulgarian excise labels were found in shipments declared as honey and auto parts, as well as hidden behind the upholstery of a minibus.
Customs officers detained 89,900 cigarettes during inspections carried out for the period 04.08.2020-03.09.2020 in the area of the Danube Bridge Vidin – Calafat border checkpoint. In most cases, the tobacco products had a Bulgarian excise label and were found in light trucks leaving the country.
On August 29, 2020, inspectors inspected a minibus transporting courier shipments to Western Europe. In two of them, 8,800 cigarettes and 6,000 heated tobacco products were found – all with Bulgarian excise labels. One of the shipments was declared as honey and the other as auto parts. According to the Law on Tobacco, Tobacco and Related Products, the sending of cigarettes with Bulgarian excise labels to another EU Member State is prohibited.
On September 3, 2020, the customs officers found in the side natural cavities on both sides of the minibus, just behind the upholstery, 22,500 pieces (1125 boxes) of cigarettes of nine different brands and varieties, covered with Bulgarian excise labels.
Another 49,800 cigarettes were seized by customs officers in the area of Danube Bridge 2 during inspections carried out in early August. In two of the cases, the tobacco products were found in the personal luggage of the drivers. They did not have the necessary excise documents under the ZADS and the drivers were issued acts to establish administrative violations.
An driver of a truck also attempted to smuggle cigarettes illegally. On 08.08.2020, around 9 pm, at the exit from the country, a Mercedes with a trailer was stopped for inspection. The driver traveled from Turkey to Hungary and transported electric blankets with a regular transit declaration. In the natural cavity, just behind the lower bed of the tractor cab, the customs officers found 6600 cigarettes without a valid Bulgarian excise label.
On the night of September 3, 2020, customs officers found 2,800 cigarettes in a foreign-registered truck traveling from Turkey to Germany. Tobacco products labeled “for duty free sale only” were hidden in the factory cavity of the duct to the air filter of the tractor.
Source: Customs Agency