Bulgaria's border police busted on Saturday a cigarette smuggling ring at Oltomantzi on the border with Serbia, in the Kyustendil region in western Bulgaria. Photo by Yuliana Nikolova (Sofia Photo Agency)
Bulgaria's border police busted on Saturday a cigarette smuggling ring at Oltomantzi on the border with Serbia, in the Kyustendil region in western Bulgaria.
Two Bulgarian nationals were arrested on charges of organising the smuggling on the Bulgarian side of the border, together with nearly 37,000 cigarette packs, worth some BGN 73 000 on the Bulgarian market.
The duo has been under surveillance for months before the arrest. They would get in touch with their Serbian counterparts and then sell the cigarettes to shops in the Kyustendil region.
Serbian authorities have also been notified about the identity of the Serbian smugglers, the Interior Ministry said.