Factory hidden behind the estate gate
On the premises in the Łódź Voivodeship, officials found nearly 5 tons of smoking tobacco and over 9 tons of tobacco leaf. Part of the cargo was in a truck, the rest in a farm building. The scale of the find shows it was not a random storage or small production.
The services also secured the technical base: drum dryers, heaters, shredders, and a grinding machine. The equipment allowed processing the raw material and preparing tobacco for further circulation. The procedure therefore involved several stages, from storing the leaf to its processing.
The goods had no Polish excise marks. Its estimated value, including deductions, exceeded 15 million PLN.
One raid cut the entire mechanism
The factory was dismantled by officers of the Customs‑Tax Service from the Warsaw Customs‑Tax Office and the Bieszczady Border Guard Detachment in Przemyśl. The joint operation allowed simultaneous seizure of the goods, securing of the equipment, and arrest of the person on the estate.
Seizing the tobacco stops one batch, but taking the machines removes the ability to continue production in its current form. The secured tobacco was sent to the MUCS deposit warehouse in Warsaw. The goods were removed from circulation, and the material was secured for the investigation conducted by the authorities.
Five years in prison and three preventive measures
Officials arrested a 44‑year‑old Polish citizen who was on the estate. In the District Prosecutor’s Office in Tomaszów Mazowiecki, he faced charges of illegal production and marketing of tobacco products. He faces up to 5 years in prison.
The man was subjected to police supervision, a ban on leaving the country, and a financial guarantee. The proceedings are handled by MUCS in Warsaw and the Bieszczady Border Guard Detachment under the supervision of the District Prosecutor’s Office in Tomaszów Mazowiecki.
