More than 20,000 smuggled cigarette packs discovered in Chisinau-Bucharest train

Over 20,000 smuggled cigarette packs were discovered, on Sunday evening, in the wagons of a train running on the Chisinau - Iasi - Bucharest route, the spokesman of the Territorial Inspectorate of the Iasi Border Police, Denis Lazar, announced on Monday.

The cigarettes, worth about 300,000 lei, were from the Republic of Moldova, and they were hidden in the train attendants' berths, but also in the ceilings or walls of the wagons.

"Six Romanian citizens, aged between 35 and 48 years old, who traveled as train attendants on the 401 fast train, which circulated on the Chisinau - Iasi connection - Bucharest, six Romanian citizens, presented themselves for the border formalities at the Railway Border Crossing Point of Iasi, upon entering Romania. Based on some information they held, the border police from the Iasi Border Police Sector, together with the customs workers, controled the wagons of the train. They discovered thus, hidden and undeclared, in the train attendants' berths, in the ceilings, above and below the sinks at the end of wagons number 1, 2 and 4, respectively in the walls at the end of the wagon number 6, 410,780 cigarettes, 20,539 packs), from the Republic of Moldova," said Lazar.

The cigarettes, worth a total of 293,913 lei, were seized, and the train attendants were sanctioned with fines in the amount of 50,000 lei. At the same time, one of the six attendants is being investigated for smuggling, as he was discovered before trying to bring cigarettes into the country, illegally.