Greece seizes illegal freon shipments at borders

Greek customs officials from the Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE) have seized a large quantity of illegal refrigerant liquid (freon) at two different border crossings.

At the Doirani border crossing with North Macedonia, authorities discovered 296 bottles of R134a refrigerant hidden within a specially constructed compartment in an empty container. The estimated evaded customs and taxes for this shipment amount to 55,000 euros.

Simultaneously, at the Kipi border crossing with Turkey, officials inspected a truck with Turkish registration plates. Hidden beneath a declared cargo of gypsum plaster boards, they found 1,000 bottles of R404A refrigerant. This shipment has an estimated value of 884,400 euros, with evaded taxes and duties totaling approximately 283,538 euros.

In a separate incident in Evros, approximately 10 tons of illegal freon were discovered in a truck of Turkish origin destined for France, with an estimated product value of 900,000 euros. The import of these specific refrigerants into the European Union is prohibited.