Border police use gun to catch cigarette smugglers at Romania's border with Moldova

Local border police in Botosani used guns on a mission to catch cigarette smugglers at Santa Mare, at Romania's border with Moldova, the spokesperson for the Botosani Border Police (STPF) reported on Tuesday.

Border guards on the Romanian side and STPF Botosani officers noticed, with the aid of a thermal imaging device, four people loading bulky packages in a car.

At the sight of the border police, the smugglers fled into Moldova by boat.

"Because the people in question did not submit to the legal summons by voice, the border police had to use their guns, firing two shots vertically, without any casualties or material damage," according to the spokesman.

In the abandoned packages, which were impounded by the officers, there were 2,000 packs of cigarettes worth 19,796 lei.

The border police officers are now carrying out investigations into smuggling and illegal border crossing in order to detect and name all the persons involved.