Joint operation of the Tax Agency and the National Police

• Six people who were working in the illegal factory were arrested

• 11,400 kilos of tobacco and 7,360 packets seized

• The factory contained a complete production line for making and packaging cigarettes, as well as a large quantity of precursors, cut tobacco and several thousand packets of tobacco ready for distribution.

May 26, 2023 .- Customs Surveillance officials from the Tax Agency and agents from the National Police have dismantled in Barcelona an illegal factory for cigarette packs belonging to a criminal organization of Polish origin that produced fake tobacco for distribution in different European countries and have arrested six people for alleged crimes of tobacco smuggling and smuggling of prohibited goods, against Industrial Property, and against the Public Treasury.

The operation began at the beginning of May when the Customs Surveillance Service of the Tax Agency and the National Police, through international customs and police cooperation with the United Kingdom, became aware of the possible establishment of a criminal organisation in the town of Roda de Ter (Barcelona), which would have a facility transformed into a clandestine cigarette factory for sale in various European countries.

During the subsequent investigation, it was possible to verify the presence of various individuals who entered and left the facility, adopting multiple security measures, as well as carrying out checks to locate possible surveillance.

After carrying out the appropriate checks, it was found that the installation could be compatible with an illegal factory, as the windows were sealed and there were closed-circuit cameras around the perimeter, so an entry device was created. In order to prevent the dismantling of the facility by the organization and to allow the operation to proceed, entry was scheduled for May 11.

Complete production line

After the inspection of the warehouse, it was found that there was an illegal factory where six Ukrainian nationals were working, which contained a complete production line for making and packaging cigarettes, as well as a large quantity of precursors, cut tobacco and several thousand packets of tobacco ready for distribution.

In total, 11,400 kilos of cut tobacco, 7,360 packets of tobacco, a cigarette machine, a filter assembly machine, a packaging machine, a tape packaging machine, a packet packaging machine and a cardboard packaging machine were seized. In addition, various precursors have been used for manufacturing, such as polypropylene coils, cigarette pack lining and cigarette paper rolls. The proceedings and the detainees have been placed at the disposal of the duty court in Vic (Barcelona).