Police stopped the activity of an underground tobacco factory in the Nikolaev area (VIDEO)
They sold products through a network of telegram channels, and sent goods by mail and trucks. A “call center” was specially created for registration and processing of orders. In addition to tobacco products and equipment, merchants seized money in different currencies totaling more than 9.2 million UAH.
Operatives of the Department of Strategic Investigations, together with the investigators of the Main Investigation Department of the National Police, continue activities to expose the clandestine production of tobacco products. The activity of such an illegal factory was neutralized in the Nikolaev area. The Kyiv resident organized illegal business, attracting residents of Odessa and Nikolaev regions.
In the warehouse, dealers installed an industrial line and other equipment for the production of cigarettes. Employees of the factory worked in shifts and in closed mode. In order to monitor the activities of the workshop staff and avoid unwanted visitors, the premises were equipped with indoor and outdoor video surveillance cameras. In addition, autonomous power sources were installed to mask the consumption of a significant amount of electricity and the uninterrupted operation of the production.
The production capacity of the underground factory allowed the production of up to 40,000 packs of cigarettes per day. Part of the profits received by the members of the criminal group invested in the development of the “business”, the rest was distributed among all its participants.
Operatives and investigators, together with the Office of the Prosecutor General, carried out measures, as a result of which the activities of the underground tobacco factory were neutralized. In addition, authorized searches were carried out in places of production, residence of the defendants and in cars. They seized an industrial line and other equipment, 40,000 packs of cigarettes, one ton of tobacco, 110,000 packaging packs for cigarettes, “rough” records, money in foreign and national currency equivalent to more than 9.2 million UAH.
After a series of procedural measures, a decision will be made to notify persons involved in the clandestine business about the suspicion.
National Police of Ukraine
