A sniffer dog belonging to the State Customs Service detected more than 1,600 packs of cigarettes without excise stamps in a car at the Velyka Palad customs checkpoint on the border with Hungary.
According to the service's Telegram channel on Friday, a BMW X6 driven by a 41-year-old resident of Zakarpattia region entered the customs and border control zone. The woman deliberately chose the green corridor.
After the dog searched the vehicle, customs officers found several specially constructed compartments filled with cigarettes, a total of 1,610 packs without Ukrainian excise stamps.
As the actions showed signs of a customs offense, a protocol was drawn up against the driver under Part 1 of Article 483 of the Customs Code of Ukraine, concerning the movement or actions aimed at moving goods across Ukraine's customs border while concealing them from customs control.
The cigarettes and the SUV have been seized pending a court decision.
In addition, the State Customs Service sent the Zakarpattia regional office of the Economic Security Bureau a report of an unlawful act bearing signs of a crime under Article 204 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, concerning the illegal manufacture, storage, sale or transportation for sale of excise goods.
