The case against a group suspected of the illegal production and sale of tobacco has been referred to court
Law enforcement officers have concluded an investigation into a group of individuals suspected of organising a full cycle of illegal production and distribution of tobacco products.
According to the National Police, in April this year, officers from the Department of Strategic Investigations, working alongside staff from the Economic Security Bureau, uncovered residents of Zakarpattia Oblast who, according to the investigation, had organised the illegal cultivation, processing and sale of tobacco. Among those implicated is the head of a company specialising in the cultivation of cereals and other crops, who is also a councillor in one of the local communities.
According to the investigation, the tobacco was grown on plots of land totalling 3.5 hectares in Zakarpattia Oblast. After the harvest, the raw material was dried and fermented in specially equipped premises, after which it was sent to the Ivano-Frankivsk region. There, other participants carried out the shredding and packaging of the tobacco.
Investigators believe that the shredded tobacco was subsequently supplied via postal consignments to underground cigarette manufacturers, with payment received into the suspects’ own bank accounts.
During searches of the suspects’ homes, storage premises, vehicles and plots of land, law enforcement officers seized over eight tonnes of raw tobacco, equipment for processing it and rough notes. The estimated value of the seized property is over 3.3 million hryvnias.
As part of the criminal proceedings, four individuals have been served with notices of suspicion. Indictments, under the procedural supervision of the Transcarpathian Regional Prosecutor’s Office, have been submitted to the court under Part 1 of Article 204 and Part 1 of Article 209 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
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.
