The National Police in the Kharkiv region have uncovered a large-scale operation involving the production and sale of counterfeit cigarettes
Over the past week, police officers, in collaboration with other law enforcement agencies, carried out a series of authorised searches in Kharkiv and the Kharkiv region as part of pre-trial investigations into the illegal circulation of excise goods.
During the special operation, law enforcement officers uncovered an underground tobacco production facility that had been operating almost continuously. According to the investigation, the counterfeit goods were manufactured on an industrial scale and distributed throughout Ukraine via postal services.
During the searches, approximately 1.2 million cigarette tubes, over 120,000 packets of cigarettes, nearly 400 kilograms of tobacco, and equipment for the manufacture and packaging of tobacco products—including an electric injector and cigarette-filling machines—were seized.
Law enforcement officers also seized rough notes, bank cards, delivery notes, computer equipment and cash.
The total value of the items seized in this operation amounts to over 22 million hryvnias. According to the investigation, the monthly profit of the scheme’s organisers could have reached 10–12 million hryvnias.
Separately, law enforcement officers documented the activities of individuals who organised the illegal sale of e-cigarettes and e-liquids through retail outlets and Telegram channels in Kharkiv and the surrounding region.
The counterfeit products were sold without licences or permits. As part of this case, a further 35,000 units of illegal products worth nearly 15 million hryvnias were seized.
Ten individuals involved in the criminal proceedings have already been notified of the charges against them. Investigative actions are being carried out as part of investigations under articles relating to the illegal manufacture and sale of excise goods, smuggling, and the legalisation of property obtained by criminal means.
The physical evidence has been sent for forensic analysis.
Operational support was provided by officers from the Cybercrime Prevention Directorate in the Kharkiv region, the Strategic Investigations Department of the National Police, the 4th Border Guard Detachment of the State Border Guard Service, and the Security Service of Ukraine, under the procedural guidance of the Kharkiv Regional Prosecutor’s Office.
Law enforcement officers are continuing to identify other individuals involved in the illegal business, as well as the distribution channels for counterfeit goods.
