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Law enforcement officers have uncovered a tobacco supply chain running from Zakarpattia to underground workshops

Law enforcement officers have uncovered a tobacco supply chain running from Zakarpattia to underground workshops

14 April 2026, 16:30

Law enforcement officers have uncovered a tobacco supply chain running from Zakarpattia to underground workshops — Searches at the warehouse Photo: National Police of Ukraine

Law enforcement officials have announced the dismantling of a group that had established an illegal full-scale operation for the production and distribution of tobacco products. According to the investigation, the raw materials were grown in Zakarpattia and processed in the Ivano-Frankivsk region.

Operatives from the National Police’s Department of Strategic Investigations, in collaboration with staff from the Economic Security Bureau, have uncovered a group which, according to the investigation, organised the full cycle of illegal production and distribution of tobacco products.

According to law enforcement officials, residents of Zakarpattia and Ivano-Frankivsk regions are involved in the illegal activities, including the head of a company specialising in the cultivation of cereals and other crops. Investigators believe that, without the necessary licences, they organised the cultivation of tobacco on plots of land totalling over 25 hectares in Zakarpattia region.

After harvesting the raw material, the suspects, according to law enforcement, dried and fermented it in specially equipped premises. The tobacco leaves were then sent to Ivano-Frankivsk region, where other participants carried out its shredding and packaging.

According to available information, the shredded tobacco was sold to underground cigarette manufacturers via postal parcels.

To disrupt this supply chain, law enforcement officers carried out operations across two regions. Searches were conducted at the suspects’ homes, in storage facilities, vehicles and on land plots.

As a result, over 8 tonnes of raw tobacco, processing equipment, mobile phones, data storage devices and rough notes were seized. The estimated value of the seized items is over 3.3 million hryvnias.

The criminal proceedings are being investigated under Articles 199 and 204 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine under the procedural supervision of the Transcarpathian Regional Prosecutor’s Office. Following a series of investigative actions and expert examinations, a decision will be made regarding the notification of suspicion to all members of the group.

Law enforcement officials reminded that, in accordance with Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is presumed innocent of a crime until their guilt has been proven in accordance with the law and established by a court conviction.

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