A consignment of cigarettes has been discovered in Poland instead of the declared polythene film
On 9 July, at the ‘Yagodin’ border crossing, Polish customs officials detained a DAF lorry (registration number CA0010NT/CA0010XG) which, according to the documents issued by the Ukrainian side, was carrying polythene film in rolls. This was reported by journalist Yevhen Plinsky on his personal Telegram channel.
During an inspection of the cargo, Polish customs officers, according to the source, discovered around 500 cartons of cigarettes instead of the declared goods. The author estimates the approximate market value of the seized consignment at around 30 million hryvnias.
According to the data provided, the carrier of the cargo is KOVTRANS LLC (EDRPOU code 41694426), whilst the owner of the goods is listed as a sole trader.
The source claims that polythene film is often used as a cover-up when goods are illegally moved across the border. He also states that customs risk alerts, which would have triggered a scan or an in-depth inspection, should have been triggered for this vehicle; however, according to him, this did not happen.
The article speculates that the failure of the automated risk analysis and management system to trigger an alert could indicate possible irregularities during customs clearance. However, the source cited does not contain any official confirmation of these claims.
The journalist notes that no further details are currently available and expresses the hope that the reasons for the risk system’s failure to trigger an alert will be clarified soon, and that the full circumstances surrounding the passage of this consignment will be established.
Meanwhile, further information regarding this consignment has come to light. According to Plinsky, the carrier of the lorry loaded with cigarettes, which was detained by the Polish authorities at the ‘Yagodin’ border crossing, was Volodymyr Antonovych Shum, a sole trader, and the consignor was “TRANSKOMBUD” Ltd (EDRPOU code 45222468) from the city of Uzhhorod in Zakarpattia Oblast. According to the same information, the vehicle bore the registration numbers SCANIA AC6842BX/AC9233XP. The author of the publication also notes that the DAF CA0010NT/CA0010XG lorry and the carrier ‘KOVTRANS’ Ltd (EDRPOU code 41694426), are, according to him, also involved in schemes for the illegal movement of tobacco products. None of the parties has provided official confirmation.
As previously reported by The Public, business representatives consider the impact of the BEB’s work to be insignificant, as, despite the agency’s claims of having shut down an illegal cigarette factory, the black market in Ukraine continues to grow rapidly. According to Kantar Ukraine, it has reached 19.8 per cent.
