Polish customs seize large cigarette and marijuana smuggling operations at border

Polish customs officers of the Krajowa Administracja Skarbowa stopped an ambulance at the Korczowa crossing on the Polish‑Ukrainian border after suspecting irregularities in the vehicle’s purpose. Inside side compartments they uncovered 910 packs of untaxed cigarettes concealed in the ambulance, a violation of excise regulations. The driver, a 39‑year‑old Ukrainian citizen, claimed she was transporting patients for medical treatment to Germany. The authorities initiated criminal‑tax proceedings and seized 23,000 zloty in cash.

In a separate operation in Warsaw, customs officers from the Mazowieckie Urząd Celno‑Skarbowy inspected a consignment from Thailand that was declared as 180 cans of mandarin pulp. Random checks revealed that each can contained packaged marijuana, totaling more than 47 kg of the drug and valued at over 2.3 million zloty. The case is being investigated by the investigative division under the supervision of the Warsaw‑Ochota district prosecutor, with potential imprisonment of three to twenty years for the traffickers.