Moldova: Court confiscates $430k in illegal cigarettes lacking excise stamps
A Moldovan court has ordered the confiscation of illegally imported cigarettes worth more than 7.7 million lei (approximately $430,000; £350,000).
The ruling stems from a criminal case opened in 2022 by the Prosecutor's Office for Combating Organized Crime and Special Cases (PCCOCS), after border control officers discovered major irregularities in the import of the tobacco products, which were all unstamped.
According to prosecutors, the importing company used a license that permitted the introduction of only excise-stamped tobacco products.
The cigarettes, which had been brought into Moldova in December 2020 via a customs control point, were reportedly destined for the breakaway region of Transnistria (Tiraspol).
In addition to the confiscation, a local court also ordered the payment of more than 1.8 million lei, which covers the value of the trucks that transported the consignment from the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Furthermore, the company was fined an additional 500,000 lei and deprived of the right to import goods from abroad for a period of four years.
The ruling is subject to appeal.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
