Bulgaria 1st in Europe in Contraband Cigarettes Fight

The Director of the Customs Agency, Gen. Vanyo Tanov, praised his subordinates for halting 16 trucks with contraband cigarettes only in the course of 20 days. Photo by BGNES

Bulgaria ranks 1st in Europe and among the top 5 in the world by the seizure of contraband cigarettes, the Director of the Customs Agency, Gen. Vanyo Tanov, announced.

Tanov spoke Monday for the Bulgarian National Radio, BNR, saying Customs agents have halted 16 trucks with contraband cigarettes only in the course of 20 days.

The Customs Head admitted that in the beginning of the year the fight against cigarette smuggling had been facing plenty of obstacles, but the Agency was able to build the right team to effectively counter illegal cigarette traffic to the EU.

Earlier Monday, in a TV interview, the Member of the Parliament from the conservative Order, Law and Justice (RZS) party, Emil Vasilev, accused Interior Minister, Tsvetan Tsvetanov, of direct ties with cigarette contraband in Bulgaria.

The RZS MP offered as evidence claims the police had failed to bust even one large cigarette smuggling shipment and Tsvetanov's known strong disagreements with Tanov.

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