PALERMO (ITALPRESS) – A real industry of illegal tobacco, able to invoice 700 thousand euros per day, has been dismantled by the financiers of the Provincial Command of Palermo. The operation, coordinated by the Palermo office of the European Prosecutor (EPPO), led to the seizure of a clandestine factory in Castagnaro (Verona) and several storage centers in the Paduan.
The intervention has seen the use of more than 70 soldiers and has allowed to seal a cutting-edge technology plant from 5 thousand square meters, rated more than 2 million euros. Inside, the Yellow Flames have found machinery capable of producing 4 million cigarettes per day, in addition to 17 tons of blondes already packed with the logos of famous brands (Marlboro and Winston) and 8 tons of chopped tobacco.
The investigations started from some seizures carried out in Palermo, going up the entire logistics chain through pawnings and video surveillance. During the blitz in Verona, the financiers surprised 11 workers of Ukrainian and Bulgarian nationality who lived in lucky houses in the establishment. Together with two Italian entrepreneurs, they were all referred to for smuggling and counterfeiting.
If placed on the market, seized cigarettes would have caused a tax damage of 3.5 million euros between excise duty and VAT. On an annual basis, the production capacity of the plant would have guaranteed illicit profits for 240 million euros, subtracting approximately 160 to the public funds.
The operation represents the culmination of an investigative activity lasting nine months that, in different regions of Italy, has led altogether to the seizure of 4 production plants and 72 tons of foreign processed tobacco.
– Photos: Press Office Guardia di Finanza –
(ITALPRESS).
