Lithuanian border guards confiscated seven batches of smuggled cigarettes transported by balloons from Belarus
One of them was discovered with the help of a Eurocopter helicopter by border guards, reports LRT with reference to the Lithuanian State Border Guard Service (VSAT).
Photo: VSAT
The shipments were discovered by border guards and police in various locations in Southern Lithuania. As usual, GPS devices were attached to all of them. On Tuesday, a total of 12,500 packs of Belarusian cigarettes were received by VSAT.
In total, 69 batches of smuggled cigarettes delivered from Belarus to Lithuania by balloons have been confiscated this year (January — 29, February — 24, March — 16). For comparison, last year 63 such batches were confiscated in January, 45 in February, and 77 in March.
Last year, a total of 635 shipments of cigarettes delivered by balloons to Lithuania were confiscated, while 226 such cases have been recorded in 2024. In 2023, three attempts were recorded, and in 2022, no balloon smuggling was carried out.