Four Moldovans arrested in Romania for cigarette smuggling

Four citizens of Moldova were arrested in Romania on cigarette counterfeiting and smuggling charges. Another four Moldovans suspected of organizing the illegal business have been identified and will be arrested, the head of the Moldovan Ministry of the Interior's Fraud Investigation Division Vasile Sharko told a news conference on August 10. The illegal businesses was set up in Onesti town of Bacau county in 2009. The company was producing 5,000 packs of cigarettes an hour. The cigarettes were sold under the Moldovan brand “Plugarul” and the Ukrainian brand “Ronson” that was removed a year ago, Vasile Sharko said. The police seized eight pieces of German and Bulgarian equipment for making cigarettes with filter that were smuggled into Romania. Since 2009, the Moldovans have sold cigarettes to the value of over €1 million. There were also seized cigarettes and filters that were to be used to make 35 million packets of cigarettes. A pack of “Plugaru” and “Ronson” cigarettes on Romanian's black market was sold for €1-1.20. The Romanian authorities took legal action over tax evasion. The four Moldovans face two to seven years in jail.