Turkish bus steward smuggles €75k gold jewelry at Bulgaria border

Customs officers at the Kapitan Andreevo checkpoint on Bulgaria’s border with Turkey stopped a Turkish‑citizen bus steward, aged 53, who tried to conceal 14‑carat gold jewellery in a hidden compartment of the vehicle. Six transparent polyethylene bags were found in the bus’s air‑duct, containing 717.5 g of gold rings, bracelets and necklaces valued at €75,337. The bus, registered in Turkey, was on a route through Bulgaria to Kosovo. After a detailed inspection, the suspect was detained, a criminal case was opened by the Haskovo district prosecutor’s office, a €2,000 guarantee was imposed and a travel ban issued, with his border‑crossing document temporarily withdrawn.