During the investigation of large-scale cigarette smuggling using weather balloons, law enforcement agencies in Lithuania detained 27 people, including 13 officials.
The operation of the Criminal Police Bureau of Lithuania was conducted from May 19 to 21.
"This part of the operation was also aimed at combating corruption phenomena (...) and the individuals associated with them. A total of 27 people were detained this week, 13 of whom are not only police officers but also employees of the State Border Guard Service of Lithuania," said Marius Draudvila, Deputy General Commissioner of the Police of Lithuania, today.
According to him, the operation targeted organized groups "acting cynically against the national, economic interests and security interests of the Republic of Lithuania," creating threats to civil aviation, public safety, and infrastructure.
"Members of the criminal community used GPS devices to know exactly where the weather balloons land and where to pick them up, then they hid them and sold smuggled cigarettes," Draudvila said.
According to the deputy commissioner, members of the organized crime group used encrypted communication means and maintained strict secrecy.
"During the operations this week, thermal imaging cameras, drones, GPS transmitters, radios, numerous SIM cards, face masks, and means for packaging smuggled cigarettes were seized," noted Draudvila.
According to him, 74 searches were conducted during the operations, involving more than 100 police officers.
Of the 13 detained officials, three serve in the State Border Guard Service of Lithuania (two of them are shift supervisors), and the remaining 10 are police officers. Eight of them are patrol officers from the Šalčininkai District Police Commissariat, one investigator from the Vilnius Territorial Police Commissariat, and one forensic expert (senior investigator) from the Vilnius County Police Headquarters.
According to Draudvila, these employees provided smugglers with official information.
Currently, 49 suspects are involved in the pre-trial investigation, and the total value of the seized property amounts to 4.2 million euros.
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